His Own Road
by PhoneTap
Summary: Ethan Hawkins just wants to be a pokemon trainer. Against his wishes, his parents enroll him into St. Margaret Academy in Sandy Hills, four hours from the city he's spent all his life in. As the world of the American League unfolds before him, Ethan gets tangled in a mess of thievery that could very well end his journey before it even begins.
1. Chapter 1

The city had faded from Ethan's sight hours ago. Hundreds of trees belonging to the woods, joined by open pastures as great as the sea replaced middle class neighborhoods, glass high-rises and paved intersections. His mother's minivan cruised down the winding highway, Ethan said nothing. He wasn't supposed to be talking anyway. A bubbly pop song filled the car, it was stupid. His mother hummed along, tapping her thumbs on the steering wheel. They passed by herds of miltank and tauros, he watched the pokemon graze on the lush grass.

Further off in the distance he spotted a patrat at standing atop a hill. Ethan pressed a thumb against the cool glass. The mound was about the same size, this far out. Now it looked like the wide-eyed beast was three inches tall, standing on his thumb. He smirked with amusement. Acting fast he reached into a pocket and fished out his cell. This deserved a picture.

Elisha glanced at him, smiling. "Glad to see you in better spirits."

Ethan frowned. He certainly was not in a happier mood. He sank deeper into his chair like a spoiled child that didn't get a toy at the toy store. "I'm bored, that's all."

He spoke the truth. They had been heading down state, on the road nearly four hours now. He peeked at the GPS in front of him, a little less than an hour remained. The van rounded a bend toward a long, breathtaking bridge that appeared similar to the Golden Gate Bridge. It stretched over a lake, turning into a river that went back upstate. Below, he noticed several ducklett and swanna floating along the surface, dipping their heads underwater. Further out, Ethan saw a fisherman and his son in a lone boat not too far off. The boy looked to be no older than a first or second grader, wearing a bucket hat and a life jacket.

He tugged excitedly on his father's arm, pointing at all the magikarp and goldeen leaping up around them. Ethan's mother reached out and turned a knob on the radio, changing the station. Above the bridge, a flock of taillow, led by a couple Swellow soared on air currents. Ethan leaned forward, watching through the windshield.

Elisha, his mother, was mocha skinned and lanky. As was her son. Her eyes brown, his hazel, like his father. Normally her hair came down to her shoulders. Last week though, while Ethan got a haircut in preparation for today, she tied her own into long thin braids and put them in a ponytail.

It was supposed to be raining by the time they arrived. The temperature would drop as well. Elisha sported a windbreaker over a long-sleeved shirt. Below that, comfortable jeans. Her son's outfit wasn't too different. He wore his favorite gray steelix hoodie instead of a jacket.

"We're almost there, so you might as well lose the attitude," Elisha began. "St. Margaret is a great school."

Ethan sat back in his seat, adjusting his seatbelt as he turned his head to stare out his window again. His frown deepened. He didn't care whether the academy was a good school or not. He wanted to be at Lakeside Prep. Not only was it still in the city around everything he knew and was comfortable with, all his friends were going to be pokemon trainers there. Here, he was being dropped off in the boonies, all by himself. He hated it already.

Elisha continued. "You're too young to throw away your education for all this pokemon business. Remember our deal?"

When he didn't answer Elisha's jaw tightened in irritation. "Ethan!"

He grumbled.

"Louder, please."

He sighed. "I remember."

"Thank you. St. Margaret is the perfect place for you to finish your studies. And you get to go do what you've always wanted. Two birds, one stone. Your father and I could've saved our money, you know."

Ethan looked down. He understood the hoops his parents were leaping through to do this. He just didn't want to be alone. Out here by the woods and farms, he literally knew absolutely nothing. And to top it off he was going be here the next two or three years. He might as well be moving to a new state. Out here, he'd have to start all over. Ethan didn't know how teenagers acted when his mom was younger, but these days kids were pretty cold. He opened his mouth to reply but a chippy tune interrupted, cutting off the song on the radio too. Through the van's bluetooth her cell was was going off, one of Elisha's friends was calling. She quickly answered, pressing a button on the wheel.

"Hey girl, what's up?" She began.

Still clutching his cell, he started scrolling through the feed of his social media app. Half of him felt relieved he was stopped.

Ethan's stomach started doing flips when they arrived at the school's outer gates. They surrounded a dense forest. The van continued down a narrow dirt path with tall trees and thick brown shrubs on both sides. Ethan could barely see past them. He could hear the cries of pokemon. Despite it drizzling he rolled down his window. Chirps of birds and the buzzing of bugs filled the air. They were all around him. Rain sprinkled his face.

He thought about catching a Spearow or a Murkrow. Maybe a Fletchling. Could that be the move? Long as he was he student at St. Margaret anything he captured around here was his to keep. He grinned. _Mine, _he thought. To care for and play with, to raise. Battle. Thinking about all these things made him excited and that eased the knots of anxiety in his belly. Perhaps his time out here wouldn't be so bad…

"JESUS!" Elisha yelled, suddenly stomping on the breaks.

Ethan turned to face his mom, he could barely get a word out before the momentum of the van roaring to a stop threw him forward. Forcing him to stare at his lap. Luckily his seatbelt prevented him from slamming his head against the dashboard. The van kicked up a thick cloud of dust as it swerved a bit to the bushes.

Breathing hard and admittedly scared out of their mind, mother and son looked up through the windshield, spotting an enormous sawsbuck standing in the middle of the road. It gazed at them apprehensively. Lush green leaves sprouted from its tall, crooked antlers. He noticed a scar above one of the eyes. Its fur was full and chestnut colored. Ethan blinked.

"It's…"

Not even a second later, a herd of deerling, accompanied by more sawsbucks came sprinting through the green from his mother's side. Their hooves sounded like thunder; they could feel the ground trembling. There were so many Ethan couldn't keep up his count. He leaned forward, his heart started to pound faster, not from fear this time, but from sheer fascination.

This moment just took the cake. There were more pokemon here than he'd probably ever seen in his life. Albeit it being the same one and its evolution. So close, so… real. Elisha also seemed to be captivated. He had to get this on his phone. He glanced down, fumbling through every pocket on him. _Where was it? Oh come on!_

He found it on the floor between his shoes. Unbuckling the van's belt, he ducked down to grab it. When he came back up everything was silent. Real thunder rumbled across the gray skies.

The big sawsbuck remained. It snorted, a puff of nearly visible vapor rising from its nostrils. Without a word it bolted off, leaving them to sit back and exhale.

"Goodness," Elisha clutched her chest. "I didn't… I didn't realize I was holding my breath!"

She turned to her son, putting a hand on his shoulder. Then moved to his arm. "Are you alright? Does anything hurt?" She lifted his arm to check his side.

Ethan pushed her hand away, gently. "I'm fine," He said. A smile crept across his face. "That thing was huge."

His mother chuckled. "Wasn't it?!" She rubbed her forehead. "Swear to God it, came out of nowhere… I'm so sorry!"

Ethan waved a hand at her. He needed a second to process what just happened. She noticed his smile and she couldn't stop a proud grin from forming on her own lips.

"What do you think now?"

"I… I don't know." He said lowly. He pointed at something right ahead on the side of the path, closer to him. It was a fancy sign, a myriad of colors with bold cursive letters. _Welcome to St. Margaret Academy_, it read. _A Family of Learning._

Elisha nudged him. "There's one on my end too."

Sure enough, they found another. A smaller, diamond shaped yellow one with the silhouette of a deerling and a venipede. Black letters, all caps.

_BEWARE OF ROAMING POKEMON._

That made them laugh.

She grabbed the steering wheel and turned it to the left. Then she stepped on the gas and the van was off once more.

Ethan recalled his mom reading something online about their gates protecting the habitats of pokemon. Hunters caught on the grounds would be arrested and fined. He also remembered reading that certain areas the forest were open only to part time staff and faculty. He wondered if any of them were out here.

Not too long after, they reached a crowded parking lot next to the campus. It wasn't hard to find, there were more signs. Handwritten with bright markers.

Standing in small patches of well-kept grass decorated with polished statutes were trios of teenagers in raincoats and hooded jackets. Helping to direct cars and buses of incoming students. Their partner pokemon eagerly assisted. There was a hoothoot on some kid's shoulder with glowing red eyes. It used the scarlet beams it emitted like the long arms of a security blockade right before vehicles entered the lot. A jigglypuff danced cutely at one girl's side each time she handed out a ticket and told drivers which lot to park in.

Another guy had a gurdurr that was hoisting a female student in each hand high over its head. And they held signs above them, to reach the windows of a coach bus behind his van. All of that was to the left, facing his mom. Ethan's eyes grew big as dinner plates. He felt like he was a six year old again.

Shay grabbed a fresh stack of registration forms from the giant printer in the corner of the teacher's lounge. Three-hundred papers was quite a load to carry alone and the red haired woman struggled for a second to balance the hefty weight in her arms. When she felt comfortable enough to move with them she hurried out of the spacious white room, entering a brightly colored lobby swarming with old students working behind long desks. New students stood in front of them, waiting in long lines to be served, with their parents. Glass panels made up the walls that surrounded the open space and behind them were offices where faculty spoke with mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, as well as the elderly. All answering any questions about the school or handling registration issues. Beside them, computer labs were filled with more teens, nearly finished in completing important paperwork. Registration time was certainly a whirlwind.

Dressed in a pristine button up, a dark pencil skirt that hugged her curves and heels, Shay zigzagged her way past lines of waiting kids with their families, making her way to an empty corner where a small group of second and third years were waiting, chatting quietly amongst themselves.

"Alright everyone," She huffed once she reached them. "Here's the re-up. You know what to do."

"Yes, Ms. Willows!" All the students said as they grabbed large stacks from the pile.

"Once you've passed out all the forms, you're done here," She pushed her glasses onto her nose. "Find Mr. Nichols and get ready for the tours!"

She watched her kids disperse into the crowds, shaking the strain from her arms and hands. "Phew," She sighed to herself. That out of the way, she needed to find her clipboard and check on the parking lot situation. Where on Earth did she leave it, again?

"Looking for this?" A man's voice asked, coming from behind her.

She spun around, meeting Mr. Humphries or Calvin, as she knew him, as he approached her. He was holding a clipboard in each hand. Not only was he a Geometry teacher at St. Margaret, he was the school's Normal type gym leader. The final line for seniors to cross before graduation. A man with broad shoulders, wearing a striped and buttoned vest, gray slacks. His hair was cut low, styled into a neat fade. Below that, a salt and pepper streaked goatee.

"Oh Cal, you're a lifesaver!" Shay said relieved, extending an arm out to take the one in his left hand.

"Found it on my desk when I went back to the office. Figured you'd need it." He grinned.

"Do I ever," She smiled. "Thank you. You on your way to the parking lot?"

"Actually, I don't have anywhere to be, so why not?" He shrugged. "If it's anything like this lobby, I'm sure they'll need all the help they can get."

"We do," Shay nodded. "Let's go."

Back outside, visitors could either park and explore the campus with their kids or use the express lane to drop an incoming student off if they had already been registered online. Ethan was one among many who completed the necessary forms and other registration procedures on his laptop with his mom. She took the second lane. There was a long line of cars along the path, stretching out from a brick red building not too far off in front of him.

Concrete walls with black gates on top of them had been built to each side of the place, going on to surround the entire campus. Ahead, more pokemon, students, guards and some faculty awaited him as if they were staff at a fancy hotel or something. Helping groups of families with their bags. Passing out packets of papers, giving out instructions on where to go. Crowds of people were piling inside.

"This place seems so lively already!" Elisha giggled.

After ten minutes, Elisha pulled the van up to the building at last. He hopped out and stretched. The wind had picked up, spraying light rain at him. He pulled his hood over his head. A group of students and their energetic partners rushed past him to tend to the large bus of teenagers. Joined by his mother he went to the back of the van, they opened the trunk to gather his things.

He glanced at his mother as she helped him. She didn't say a word. He stayed quiet as well. This was it. The lonely road. After today he wouldn't see his mother or his family until early December. Four months from now. All of the nervous energy returned full force, putting a giant knot in his stomach. His fingers felt shaky. But he had to keep moving. He had a whole bus of kids like him waiting. Ethan had a camping backpack, another bookbag on wheels, plus a very heavy duffel bag. He threw the camping one on first.

Without warning Elisha abruptly grabbed him, pulling him in for a tight hug. She squeezed him even harder when he rubbed her back. Who was he kidding, he was going to miss her. Ethan embraced her back, hard as he could.

"I'm going to miss you, kid." He heard her sniff.

"I'll miss you more." He replied. Despite him being upset the entire ride, it all melted away at this moment.

They stepped back and she wiped an eye.

"Mom, don't do that." Ethan looked down, afraid he might tear up if the water works began to flow. He felt a lump form in his throat.

"Oh shut up," She said. "You're my son and I'm not going to see you until Christmas." She wanted to wail right then. "_Christmas, Ethan_! Do you have _any idea _how stressful this is for a mother?!"

"I'll call, I promise." Ethan nodded.

"Every damn Sunday, understand?" Elisha pointed at him sternly. "Not by phone either. I want a video call because I love seeing your face."

"Alright, alright," Ethan grumbled, beginning to feel embarrassed.

"And if I see one black eye, I'm marching right up here to German suplex somebody's kid."

"Please don't. I don't think that's legal."

She folded her arms. "Who's going to stop me?"

"Uh, try the police!" He threw his hands up.

"Don't you worry about them. I'll suplex them too, if need be."

"MOM!"

She hugged him again. "I just had to get that out, okay?"

"Mmhmm." He moaned into her shirt.

"Take care of yourself," She rubbed his head. "Let the fun come to you. Remember to smile. Do your homework. I'm serious, Ethan. Do your freaking homework."

"Mmmmmppphhhh." Ethan groaned. His face was stuffed between his mother's bosom now. She was squeezing him for the second time.

They broke away at last. With all of his things, Ethan stepped onto the sidewalk and moved closer to the entrance. Elisha remained at the van, rummaging through the trunk as a brunette-haired woman walked up to him. She touched Ethan's shoulder softly, causing him to yelp and spin around.

"Whoops! I didn't mean to scare you!" She chuckled. She also had her hair tied into a long ponytail. Sporting glasses and a clipboard under one arm. She wore a zipped-up windbreaker plus a long pencil skirt that fell to her calves. It hugged her figure nicely.

"Are you a new student?"

Ethan nodded.

"Fantastic!" The woman pulled out her clipboard. "Can I have your name, please?"

"E-Ethan Hawkins."

"Hmm…" She flipped through pages of her list. "Hawkins, Hawkins…"

"Aha!" She smiled after a few minutes, circling his name on one sheet. "Found you. Your name seems familiar."

The woman held out her hand, the other squeezing the clipboard to her chest. "Anywho, welcome to St. Margaret Ethan. It's wonderful to meet you! I am Ms. Willows."

"Nice to meet you." Ethan gave her his best kind smile.

"Willows?" His mother asked slamming the trunk shut. She quickly approached them. "You wouldn't happen to be the woman I spoke to on the phone would you?"

"Well, I made _quite a few _calls to some families with the same last name…" Ms. Willows giggled.

"I'm Elisha."

The brunette's eyebrows shot up. "Oh! I remember!" She held out her hand again. "It's great to finally meet you too!"

"Likewise!" Elisha shook her hand. "Listen, can I talk with you for a second?" They started to move toward his van.

Ethan rolled his eyes and groaned. Leave it to his mother to ruin everything, put an extra set of eyes on him so he can't enjoy his freedom away from home. He began walking toward to the glass doors when he heard a female voice shout.

"Watch out, watch out!"

Several others leapt out of the way just in time, yelling out. He turned to find the person responsible right when a yellow blur unexpectedly crashed into him. He shut his eyes. There was a flash of colors in his vision and the next thing he knew he was on his ass with his bags all over the ground. Pain throbbed in his head, his chest and knees.

"Ow, ow, ow…" The blonde sat up, rubbing the side of her face. She was a freckle faced girl about his age with curly hair falling to her shoulders. Most of it was. One side of her of head had braids above an ear. She wore a thin, open parka with a blouse underneath. Below that, black corduroy jeans. She seemed to be carrying about as many bags as he was.

"Come on dude, I said watch out!" She said frustrated. "Do you have sand in your ears or something?"

"Hold on, how is this my fault?" He picked himself up. "You ran into me!" How was anyone supposed to get out of the way with that one second warning?

"Everyone else moved just fine!" She pointed at him. "You're just a slow moving dumbass!"

"Dumbass?!" He began, clenching his teeth. This girl… this freaking girl!

"My, my, this is a mess, isn't it?" A man spoke as his figure cast a shadow over the two of them.

They looked up to spot a broad shouldered man standing over them, dressed in a striped vest and slacks. He sported a salt and pepper streaked goatee. "There's no need for tempers to boil, you two. Need to get somewhere?"

He continued, placing a proud hand on his chest. "I may not look like it, but I am the gym leader of this fine establishment here. You'd be hard pressed to find any better help around! Ahahah!"

Ethan's eyes damn near went wide. St. Margaret has a _gym leader_?! He knew all about the fighting type leader at Lakeside Prep, but to have one here too, this just changed everything for him!

Students who witnessed the accident rushed to help them to her feet and collected their things. The blonde seemed just stunned as Ethan.

"Wait, you're Mr. Humphries?" She asked, shaking her to get rid of the wonder in her eyes.

"In the flesh,"He nodded.

"My name is Summer Belair and I have an appointment with you, about the Young Aces Program!"

Ethan blinked at her. This girl wanted to be a Young Ace? They had a program like that? He didn't know how things went here, but at Lakeside, Young Aces are a class of top trainers at the school. Not only that, but graduating seniors have to face the best of them before challenging the gym leader. That way, when seniors leave, not only will they be a full fledged trainer with a team and a license, they will also have one foot ahead of the competition with a gym badge. He couldn't stop a bit of envy from blooming inside him.

The man's eyebrows raised. "Ah, miss Belair! Wonderful to finally meet you in person. You're not the only student with an appointment, come with me and we can round your new classmates up."

At those words they were off, disappearing into the throng of adults and teens heading inside. He barely got a moment to breathe, because after that, his mom and Ms. Willows were at his side.

Ms. Willows turned to face him. "Your mother and I had a little chat, you'll be with me for the afternoon." She gave him a warm smile. "Don't worry, I'll take good care of you."

Just what he needed. He wanted to scream.

"Follow me." She said, walking ahead of him, into the brick building. Ethan turned to give his mother a wave, then rushed to follow the brunette, his bags bouncing behind him and at his side.

Inside, the place was about as big and spacious as the lobby of a shopping mall. Fancy carpets covered the floors. Tall pillars covered in giant banners stood in the corners, behind long counters where school staff worked from several computers. Along the walls, students stood at information booths, ready to provide whatever they could to curious parents. There were also a few school clubs present, new students could join right off the bat to make transitions easier.

"Keep up Ethan, I wouldn't want you to get lost," Ms. Willows said, making him begin to jog up to her as she zigzagged between desks. "You'll have to go upstairs to get your student ID. Around the campus that card will be your key to get in every building, even your own dorm. It'll also be your source of currency."

She made her way to a set of stairs at one end of the room. "We do start new students off with free credit, but once it runs out, I'm afraid you'll have to reload it on your own. You'll learn how to do that here." She peered over a shoulder to look at him as she moved up each step. "Understand?"

Ethan was too busy lugging the heavy wheeled backpack up the stairs and avoiding the strangers coming down. The massive and weighty duffle bag on his shoulder wasn't helping. He was starting to breathe hard. Was it always this heavy? A light sheen of sweat covered his forehead. Damn it all, why did he bring this useless pack of—

"Ethan? Do I need to repeat anything?"

"Um…" He wheezed. "Maybe."

Ms. Willows giggled. "Don't worry, the students in lab five will be happy to explain everything again. "This way."

Once Ethan had gotten his ID and the free credit, he registered himself on the school's online system and set up his email. He was kind of miffed about the whole process because he finished so many forms on his computer back at home, only to find out he had to come here and waste half an hour doing even more.

The academy was much bigger than he originally thought. It was massive. There were a little over two dozen buildings that made up the campus, according to Ms. Willows. Each of the establishments, dorms, centers, and academic halls were distanced a good ways of from one another. Which simply meant Ethan had to drag his ass out of bed early and get a move on if he wanted to be at class on time. In order to make to his new home, he had to cut through Orland Park.

The park was a vast area smack dab in the heart of school grounds. Alive with pokemon students could catch, plus spots to train them. Trees towered over every inch, the grass was lush. Ethan passed a couple of huge ponds where he noticed some groups of lotad and lombre floating on the calm waters. A flock of pidgey and pidgeotto flew high over them, squawking noisily. Venipede nearby trembled at their calls, darting for safety between the weeds.

At every intersection of the park, he found statues of the school's founders, along with famous and cherished teachers. He was surprised to find a statute of Ms. Willows amongst them. Remembering her instructions, he simply followed the brick roads to his dorm.

On his way, the rain really started to fall. Dark clouds hid the sun, making it feel like the middle of winter. Lightning flashed over him, making him begin to pick up his pace. Tall lamp posts along the road illuminated his way. Ethan's dorm was in the John J. Bison building and it wasn't far from him now.

It was another brick building painted tan, five stories high. Across the road from it was a large domed building. He assumed it must have been some kind of battling arena. Behind that place was another tall structure, though he had no clue what it was.

There was a huge monochrome lobby with a gaming area. Billiard tables, air hockey tables, even a foosball one sat in the middle of the area across from him. In the corners, he spotted a few big flat screens nailed into the wall over empty wooden stands. He guessed that was where students could plug up their own video game systems. What he couldn't get off his mind though, was why the hell everything around him was black and was responsible for this ugly crap?

Sure, he didn't know a thing about decorating and color schemes but that didn't mean it was any less fucking ugly. Even the chairs and couches by the windows, all an eye sore. Ahead of him, two security offices sat in a hallway, one to his left and one to his right. Beyond that a sign hanging from the ceiling directed him to the cafeteria.

When he pushed open the door to his dorm on the third floor, the place was empty. The living room seemed comfortable, set with an open window in front of him. A couch was pushed to wall to his right, a love seat on the opposite. A polished wooden table sat between them. Further to his left, a dark hall led to three bedrooms plus a bathroom. Behind the door in a corner was the kitchen. Kind of on the small side.

He felt exhausted already. Ethan sauntered to the very last room at the end. His bed had been moved to the middle of the room in front of the window. He didn't care. Dropping his bags, he collapsed against the bare mattress face first. His legs ached. So did his back and his shoulders. Hell, everything hurt. He did a lot of walking. At least the bed smelled nice, the scent reminded him of daisies. He felt himself sink into the material, he sighed. There were dressers already set up, and a closet to his left.

He closed his eyes, they felt so heavy. Before he knew it, he had fallen asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

A terrible noise woke Ethan. His eyes snapped open and he rolled to his back on his bed, staring at the ceiling. His new room was darker than it was when he arrived. Was that thunder? How long was he out? Rain pelted against his window across from him, some of it spraying the wooden floor boards because it was open.

Outside, the skies were still gray but the afternoon had passed. He sat up, stretched and yawned then rose to his feet to close the window. Thanks to him passing out he kept his steelix hoodie on. After pulling it off he fished his cell from his jeans. The juice in his battery had fallen below the halfway mark. He checked the time next to it, reading the small white numbers. Six-thirty-eight. Ethan raised his eyebrows. Had it really been that long?

His eyes widened when it hit him. The welcoming party! Was it over? How would he get there now? He'd have to apologize to Ms. Willows when they met up later.

Another loud crash brought him back to reality, making him jump. The wall to his left shook as it boomed through the entire dorm. That definitely didn't sound like thunder. The heck was going on?

He hurried down the hall, passing the other two rooms. He could hear a crowd of people screaming, cheering and laughing in the corridor. Entering into his living room, he noticed the door was wide open. How did that happen? He could've sworn he closed it when got in…

A group of boys and girls his age bolted past him down, shouting at each other. He raised an eyebrow. One of the guys sprinted back, poking his head into Ethan's dorm. He was a pale boy with dirty blonde dreadlocks covering most of his face.

"Bruh. Pokemon battle in the hallway. Get your ass out here, man!"

Ethan's eyes widened. They can freaking battle in here?!

He dashed out of his dorm, joining the pale teen who laughed and shook his shoulders, jumping up and down. Ahead of them a massive crowd of students had gathered, going as crazy as fans at a sports game. Some were even live streaming the event on their phones. Ethan pushed his way to the front, he had to see what kind of Pokemon they were using!

The battlers were two upperclassmen, both boys sporting light fuzzy beards under their chins. In front of him with his back facing Ethan was a messy haired guy wearing a black long sleeved shirt and jeans. He had an earring in one lobe, chains dangled from his belt loops. On his end of the fight stood a scraggy, breathing hard while holding onto its baggy extra skin using one hand.

"Xander, scraggy! Kick their asses!" One kid beside Ethan hollered.

"Do your best, scraggy!" A girl on his other side said.

"He's got it in the bag." Said another girl.

Across from Xander, his opponent was another dark-haired dread head, only his locks were neatly braided and tied into a ponytail. He had on a v-neck shirt, camo shorts. His partner for the battle was a machop.

"I wouldn't call this a championship rematch. They're using baby pokemon." He heard a boy comment.

"Finish it, Nathan! Get your revenge!" Shouted someone else.

"He should win. His machop has the advantage."

Xander snapped his fingers. "Scraggy, headbutt."

"Chop it down!" Nathan commanded.

The two fighting types charged at one another, making the crowd around them begin to yell even louder. It was enough to make Ethan's ears ring. But it was exciting. His heart was thumping so hard in his chest. This is what he wanted to see! His first day wasn't even over, yet!

The two pokemon met in the middle of the hallway. The machop lifted an arm over his head and scraggy slid to a stop before leaning back with its big head.

Scraggy started to ram its body into machop's chest however it was stopped when the gray creature bashed the bottom of his palm on top of scraggy's noggin. A loud slam filled the corridor as the two clashed. Scraggy grunted out in pain, wincing for a second but it refused to go down and held its ground. The two seemed evenly matched for a minute, locked in a contest of strength. Machop using all of his power to make his enemy bow, while scraggy fought to push its foe backward with its hard head.

"Low sweep!" Nathan raised a fist. "End it right now!"

Nathan's partner swiftly obeyed, raising a knee off the floor, causing scraggy to stumble a few steps back.

"Wait for it, scraggy." Xander spoke calmly. He was so relaxed, he had his hands in his pockets.

Machop sent a hard kick flying toward scraggy's side. Short as scraggy was, the assault would have cracked it right in the side of the neck. Scraggy followed orders, not moving an inch while macop's leg hurtled on with breakneck speed.

"Jump." Xander said.

His partner leapt high over his opponent's pokemon, seconds before getting hit. Machop swung at nothing but air, whipping up a blast of wind that sent chills down Ethan's arms.

"Headbutt it again."

As scraggy fell back toward the ground, it grabbed its extra skin around its legs then ducked forward. Performing an acrobatic front flip and slamming its forehead right against machop's own cranium. The move sent the crowd into a frenzy while machop tumbled along ground until he rolled to a stop some odd feet before Nathan. Lying face first on the floor, machop's body twitched a few times, then he went motionless.

Xander turned toward Ethan and the rest of the students, extending his arms out. Ethan watched everyone around him just about lose their minds; a couple girls in particular rushed past him to personally congratulate his scraggy. On the opposite side, other students had gathered around Nathan to encourage him for a good try. He was visibly upset.

The pale boy that dragged Ethan out of his dorm abruptly forced his way through to the middle of the hall. "Everybody scatter! Teddy's coming and he's got back up!" He pushed Ethan. "Don't just stand there bruh, get back to your dorm!"

Xander and Nathan returned their partners to their pokeballs. The crowd around them quickly began to disperse.

"What the hell goin' on, up here?!" Ethan heard a deep voice bellow from around the corner of the hallway, followed by a lot of boots thumping against the floor. "Get outta of the way, 'for I write all ya'll up! MOVE!"

Was battling not allowed? He didn't have time to ponder on it. He jogged back to his dorm and shut the door, the lights were on in his living room. He narrowed his eyes. How on earth…?

"Yo what'd ya think?" A boy's voice came from the kitchen. Following the question, the stranger appeared around the bend holding two cans of grape soda.

He was lanky, like Ethan. But the wild black afro atop his head certainly provided an extra foot or so. Everything else below that was shaved down cleanly. The guy wore shorts, a simple tank top sporting some sort of rock band on the chest.

"What did I… uh…" Ethan couldn't answer his question. He shook his head. "Hold on, are you my roommate?"

"Winner, winner, chicken dinner." He tossed Ethan his extra can of the fizzy drink. "Call me Clarke. It's my last name, but I can't stand being called Arthur."

He glared at him. "Don't call me Arthur."

"Fine." Ethan raised his hand. "I won't."

Clarke nodded appreciatively. "So… what'd ya think?"

"Think of what?"

Clarke pointed to the door. "The battle!" He arched an eyebrow. "You sure you're alright dude?"

"YES!" Ethan cleared his throat. "Y-yeah. I'm still just taking everything in."

"I gotcha," Clarke nodded. "Well here's what I think. It sucked."

Ethan almost laughed. "It did?"

"Course' it fucking did," He cracked his can open. "First that idiot with the scraggy was trying so hard to be cool and shit. Really got under my skin."

He went on after taking a quick sip. "The other fool was using machop all wrong. He was a step behind the other trainer all the way through."

Ethan folded his arms. "Would you have done something differently?"

"He shoulda' had machop use seismic toss the moment it jumped!"

Another stranger suddenly spoke. "They both seemed pretty low leveled to me."

He walked into the living room from the back. A tanned skinned teenager with glasses and long hair down to his neck. Also wearing jeans plus a sweater. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. "What if his machop didn't know seismic toss yet?"

Clarke kicked the air with a foot. "Low sweep, till it can't stand anymore! Scraggy's soft in the knees, dude. Gotta' go for the weak spots!"

He saw Ethan about to ask, so he decided to step in. "Oh yeah, this is Marco. Lucky lotto winner number three."

Marco held out his hand to Ethan. "Nice to make your acquaintance."

"Ethan." He replied shaking it.

Marco grinned. "We apparently are dealing with a machop expert." He nodded to Clarke.

"Guess so." Ethan chuckled, opening his own can at last.

Clarke frowned. "Hardy har har. I'm tryin' to tell you guys! My dad has a few machop on his ranch. Real strong ones, I've battled with em' before!"

"Hmm," Marco rubbed his chin. "Since you have so much experience, why are you at St. Margaret's?"

"To get my trainer's card, of course." Clarke said placing his hands on top of his head.

"That's it?" Marco asked. "I mean, that's all you're here for?"

Clarke shrugged. "Like I said before, my pops has a pokemon ranch back in my hometown."

He sighed after the two boys waited for him to continue. "It's a small town too, so there's not much to do. Honestly between my dad and that entire fucking place, it was suffocating. For me, getting my trainer's license is freedom. With it, I can go anywhere. I'll find my dream somewhere out there."

Ethan couldn't imagine himself in Clarke's situation. All he wanted to do was stay where he was comfortable. Lakeside Prep allowed him to show up, take his classes, go home. Convenient and simple. Rinse and repeat until the program was finished. To hear that someone wanted to leave home, it was… interesting. Thunder rumbled outside. Ethan walked across the room to close the window.

"Hey, leave it cracked. I love the smell of rain." Clarke said.

"Oh, alright." He stood by it instead, letting the cool breeze ruffle his clothes.

Clarke turned the bespectacled boy. "What about you? Why are you here?"

Marco folded his arms. "I'd like to become a pokémon ranger someday. It's an effective bridge to bring both people and pokémon together."

Clarke blinked at him for a second, then smirked. "Got that right from the Ranger's guide, didn't ya?"

"_S-shut up!_"

"I'd love to stay and finish this conversation guys," Ethan began. "But I have some unpacking to do." He made his way across the living room, heading to the hallway. Until his new roommates stood in front of him, blocking his path.

He stared at them. "What are you guys doing?"

Clarke shook his head. "Nah, what _are you _doing?"

"Don't run from the spotlight," Marco added. "Now it's your turn. Please indulge us."

Ethan looked down, unsure of where to start.

"Uh well, I've always loved pokemon obviously. Growing up I spent my summer nights watching tournaments and contests on pay per view. Then, last year, I finally decided to stop watching."

He scratched his cheek sheepishly before raising his head. "Just felt like it was time to get off my ass and try to become trainer. But to answer your question, I don't know what I want to be here yet, sorry."

"No need to apologize." Marco waved a hand at him.

"Yeah man, me and you ain't the only students round' here with our heads in the clouds." He pumped a fist in the air. "We'll figure this shit out together!"

"That much is agreeable."

"Thanks." Ethan grinned. It was satisfying to know his new roommates were pretty cool guys. "I'm mad I missed the welcoming ceremony though…"

Clarke rolled his eyes. "I didn't go either."

"It was all right," Marco explained. "There was food, a raffle but mostly we just listened to teachers talking.

"See?" Clarke made a raspberry noise with his lips. "Bunch of B.S. teachers flapping their gums. We didn't miss much."

Ethan wondered if Ms. Willows was there. If she introduced herself. It would have been a great opportunity to learn what trainer class she looked over. Didn't miss much his butt. That was everything, for him!

"Gonna go unpack now."

"Oh yeah," Clarke said, stepping aside to let him into the hallway. "Hurry back, we gotta talk favorite pokemon types!"

Ethan made his way back to his room, grabbing his duffle bag once he entered. He nearly dropped it because it was so heavy.

He literally had to drag it across the floor and heave it to this his bed in one go. No wonder he crashed for so long, carrying something like this. It was a miracle he wasn't sore… yet. He remembered what he packed, no way everything inside would make it feel like this. He unzipped the black bag and pulled it open. Horror spread across his face when he peered in it.

He pulled out a pair of black, calf high leather boots that certainly wasn't his. About five pairs of heels, four gym shoes, towels. He digged deeper. A white one piece swimsuit, tons of bras and colorful panties, even some lacy ones! Heat started to flood to his face as he continued. A flower-patterned bag with tons of makeup… he stopped. He was sure this was an invasion of privacy.

"What… the… hell…?" Ethan took a breath, feeling his stomach plunge. "WHERE IS MY STUFF?!"

Could all this belong to his mother? No, she didn't have anything like this in the back of the van. He began to pace back and forth, racking his brain for answers. How could this happen? When did he lose his—

His eyes widened when it hit him. The blonde that knocked him down when he first arrived.

"THAT GIRL!"

Marco and Clarke burst into his room. "There's a girl in here?"

Ethan spun around terrified, a pair of panties in his hand. "THAT GIRL HAS MY STUFF!"

"Oh shit!" Clarke yelled, snatching the underwear from him. He glanced at him, then at the underwear. "So um… you're into that kinda thing—uh..."

Marco yanked the underwear from him next. "You're into cross-dressing?"

"_I'm not_!" Ethan was ready to tear his hair out. "I just said that girl has my bag!" He rubbed his temples like it would help his brain remember her name.

Clarke ran a hand through his hair." Hey man, there's no judgement here. If that's you, then be you."

"_Oh my God, listen to me_!" Ethan pleaded. He sighed to calm his nervous.

He snapped his fingers. "Summer Belair! That's her name! She bumped into me when I first got here." He took the panties back. "We dropped bags and the people that helped us must have given us the wrong ones by accident!"

"Ooooooh." Marco and Clarke said.

"Are you sure it's not what Marco said?"

"NO!"

Ethan started packing all of the things back into the duffle. "I have to find her." Hell, he needed to find Ms. Willows! Perhaps he could find help at the security office. It was a good start.

With that he put a jacket over his steelix hoodie, then pulled the heavy thing over his shoulder and took off for the living room. "I'll be back guys."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Clarke caught up to him in the hall. "Slow down dude. If what you say is true, she can be anywhere on campus. This is a big friggin' place."

"We can't be out all evening. Curfew kicks in after nine."

"I'll start at the security desk," Ethan slipped on his shoes. "She has to be in the system, right? Maybe they can send her an email or something. There's also the fact that she could be looking for me too."

"I'll go with you then," Clarke darted off to his room. "Hold up, lemme grab my shoes."

"I'll get my boots too." Marco was right behind him.

Ethan arched an eyebrow. "Why're you two coming?"

"This is the best thing that's happened all day," Clarke yelled out. "You must be stupid if you think I'm gonna miss meeting the girl that wears that kind of lace panties!"

Ten minutes later, Ethan, Clarke and Marco stood at the security desk right before the main entrance in the hideous lobby. The seat behind the black marble counter was empty. Clarke pressed on the small red button at the end of the desk. He pounded on the thing three times. Yet no one appeared from the door beyond the chair.

"Where the heck are these guys?!" Clarke said through clenched teeth. "The fuck!"

Ethan thought he was ready to punch something.

Marco pushed his glasses on his nose, glancing around the empty lobby. He spotted the corridor to his left, leading to the security offices and the cafeteria.

"Maybe we can find help in one of the offices." He began walking toward the white hallway.

The three rounded the bend, watching the walls surrounding them go from pale to checkered black and white. The path continued, but the first set of doors stood to either side of them amongst glass panels. Gigantic shutters extended from one end to the other. They were closed, meaning Ethan and his new roommates couldn't see what was going on within. If there was anything happening in the first place.

"Maybe you two should try the one on the right," Marco pointed. "I'll do this one."

The trio split up as the bespectacled boy suggested. Ethan pushed on the door, it didn't budge. Instead the glass rattled softly. Clarke tried the knob, it was locked.

"Nothing," He said, turning to face Marco.

"Same here," Marco frowned, tossing bangs from his eyes. "They must be busy, hunting down those two guys battling earlier."

Ethan nodded. "You may be right… but is security really that thin? Do they need all hands on deck for such a situation?"

"Rules are rules. Battling isn't allowed in the dorms," Clarke put his hands in his pockets. "They confiscate pokemon for that stuff, dude. Sure it was fun to watch but kids out here takin' chances, you know?"

They faced Ethan, waiting on his decision.

Ethan looked down for a second, adjusting the strap of the bag on his shoulder. What to do next? Was it over already? He suddenly remembered the security post he passed while he was first on his way to the Bison building. There had to be someone who could assist them there! It was just down the road.

"I'm going to try the post outside," Ethan explained. "You guys don't have to come." He never asked them to join him, honestly. They were the ones treating this like some big adventure, those perverts.

"Don't push us off," Clarke folded his arms. "We said we'd help, all right?"

Ethan narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Mmmhm."

Marco was about to reply when a sound started to echo through the hallway ahead, coming from another corner. Something that reminded Ethan of jingling keys or a handful of loose change bouncing up and down in someone's pocket. The three spun around, Clarke taking the initiative to run up and meet the person headed their way.

"I can't believe this." He said once he reached the t-shaped intersection.

To their surprise, Xander stepped forward holding an umbrella, chains on his jeans bouncing alongside his movements. He looked at Clarke, then glanced down the hall to face Ethan and Marco.

"Well damn," He chuckled. "Were you all expecting me? Fans?"

Clarke grabbed the collar of his shirt and twisted it, forcing Xander to drop his umbrella.

"My ass. We should turn you in," He grumbled. "Maybe then we'll get some service around here."

"Not cool, bro," Xander shoved him away, causing Clarke to stumble a few feet back. Xander seemed stronger than he looked. "Snitches get stitches."

Clarke began to raise a fist. "There's three of us and one you. Way I see it, you'll be gettin' the stitches."

"I've had worse odds against me. You three pups got another thing coming if you think I'm just gonna' stand here and be held down."

Xander spoke as calmly as he did in his battle. However, Ethan could feel seriously cold intent behind every word.

"I will thrash if I need to."

Ethan did not sign up for a fight tonight. It was still his first day, for goodness sake. The last thing he wanted was his mother to swerve her van around…it'd be a world of embarrassment.

Xander glared at Clarke, popping his knuckles. He slid a foot forward, assuming his fighting stance. "Do we have a problem?"

"Everyone just wait!" Marco called out. Thank God somebody was the voice of reason around here. "This isn't the mission, Clarke."

"Yeah but this _is_ his fault, though!" The tall teenager argued.

"You don't know jack shit. For your information, I was challenged," Xander picked up his umbrella. "Nathan is just some winy ass punk who doesn't know how to get over his losses. I mopped the floor with his real team in a local tournament last year. He's had it out for me ever since."

"None of that is our business," Ethan turned to head back to the lobby. "I'm going to the post outside. Stay and fight if you want."

Clarke threw his arms up. "Jesus. That's how it is? Some friggin roommate."

Xander remained in position. He stared at his foe's huge afro, cracking a grin. "What now, coco puff? Still wanna' rumble?"

"Screw you!" Clarke shouted, really ready to pop the guy now.

"Let's just go!" Marco begged. "Fight him now and you'll join him in sitting in one of those offices. Is that what you want? On your first night?"

Clarke considered it for a second. Then he begrudgingly dropped his arms. "This isn't over, ya hear me?"

"Actually, I think it is." Xander relaxed. "I was just on my way out. This isn't even my dorm." He walked past Clarke, pushing his own hands into the pockets of his jeans. "I'll be leaving this place with you freshies."

"No way!" Clarke stomped his foot. "No way in hell you're coming with us."

Marco hurried to Clarke's side at the intersection. "For once, I agree with him. Whether you started the battle or not, you're a wanted man. We'd be guilty by association."

Xander raised a hand. "Chill. I have no interest in getting to know any of you."

He continued, extending that same hand ahead of him, revealing an empty hall. "Your friend is fucking gone. And by the time he gets to the checkpoint, I'm ghost. Hell, once we leave the building, I'll even hang back. We don't have to talk."

Across the campus in one of the tallest towers, Calvin stood at the window of the eleventh floor teacher's lounge. The space was big as a ballroom. Chandeliers hung from the ceilings. An elegant carpet covered the ground. Multiple seating areas surrounded them, complete with couches, chairs, round tables with magazines on top. Behind him on the opposite end of the room, elevators sat in the corners. There wasn't too many walls, most had been replaced by massive glass panes on either sides, stretching the length of the room. Revealing a breathtaking view of the campus and the wilderness that surrounded it. He couldn't see much anymore due to the night and the storm, but he looked on anyway. Listening to the rain beat down on the glass, it was peaceful.

Principal Munroe sat in a red comfy chair next to a round table behind him, enjoying a glass of wine. Despite a slight receding hairline, he had dark curly hair with patches of gray on the sides. His beard was shaved low, leaving a dark shadow across his face. He sported a clean white button up loosened around his neck. His dark blazer was folded neatly across his lap and underneath he wore matching slacks.

"Big turnout this year," Munroe said after finishing the rest of the drink in his glass.

Calvin nodded, still dressed in his own slacks and a vest. "Yes, much better than the last two years."

The huge number of incoming freshman this time around came from a new idea, suggested by new blood brought on board at Munroe's behest. Calvin didn't trust them. So far though, these newcomers have been racking up wins with their fresh suggestions and it was getting harder to stop them.

Munroe felt a corner of his curl into a grin. "We'll have to thank our new partners for beefing up our promotion."

Calvin grunted. "Tomorrow I'll do it personally."

"Perfect!"

Ethan wanted to smile when he saw his roommates push open the main doors, stepping out into the rain in front of the building. They seemed hesitant to continue, taking note of the downpour. He didn't know why but he was waiting several feet off with his hood on in a small garden beside a dripping bench. The sky was getting darker by the second. Dark enough for the tall lamp posts lining the brick roads behind him to glow brightly. It was colder than he cared to admit. He had to keep his hands tucked in his hoodie so they would stay warm and dry.

His eyebrows shot up when he noticed Xander exit the building a minute later, opening his umbrella. Ethan watched the trainer stare at his two new friends, getting wetter and wetter by the second. Xander threw his head back and laughed. Then he spoke to them, words Ethan couldn't hear being so far away.

Marco lowered his head in defeat, Clarke shouted out some obscenities and kicked at a puddle. Then they huddled under Xander's umbrella. Ethan chuckled and shook his own head. He did give them the chance to stay.

"Guys!" He waved at them. "Over here!"

"You two sure you don't want to turn back now?" He asked Clarke and Marco once the three of them entered the garden.

"Let's j-just get this over with." Clarke grumbled, throwing his arms inside his tank top. It didn't help much, he shuddered when a chilly gust of air blew right through him.

"Whatcha' gonna do when we split up?" Xander nudged him, fully knowing the answer. "You'll be stranded with those doughnut loving idiots. HAH!"

"They have carts," Marco replied, looking just as miserable as his roommate. Rain rolled down the lens of his glasses. "We'll catch a ride back."

Right on cue, before the four of them could set off, a large six passenger club cart pulled up to the side of the road behind them, stopping next to a lamppost. One guard, a bald, bearded man sporting a plastic poncho and leather gloves leaned forward in the driver's chair squinting at them, beyond the picket fence.

"Hey! You kids!" He shouted. "What's going on over there? Come here, all of you."

"Lucky!" Ethan hurried over to him.

Xander hesitated. Would he be caught? The guards were always sharing things with each other over their radios.

Clarke bumped his shoulder into him. "Move, I'm freezing out here!"

"Don't push me!" He shot back.

The guard looked each of them in the eyes. "Got a bad storm about to hit the campus, this rain is only the tip of the iceberg." He pointed to the Bison building. "If that's your dorm, better get inside before everything locks down. That's in two hours."

"I'd love to be inside sir…" Ethan began. He explained his problem to the man, patting the heavy duffle bag.

"Me and my friends tried to look for help, but there's no guards around in there." He said once he finished.

"Craziness," The guard reached for his radio, pushing down on a button. "What the hell… JBB, this is fourteen, please respond—"

Xander held his breath.

"Honestly sir, I'm just trying to get my bag back. I have a lot of important stuff in there, some of which costs too much to be replaced," Ethan spoke up, interrupting him.

The guard looked at him. He sighed. "Fine. The offices in your dorm wouldn't have been able to help you anyway, without more information on this girl. Best thing I can do is get you over to lost and found at the Winetta Lab. It's not too far from here. They can check all the items and put out an email blast. Hopefully your girl will come across it."

"That'd be a big help sir."

"Hop on in," The man patted the seat beside him. "The rest of you, get back to your dorms."

Xander opened his mouth to speak but Marco cut him off.

"Did you say the Winetta Lab? We're all supposed to be there." He began fishing around in his pockets. Half a second later he yanked out a folded sheet of paper. "This is from Ms. Shay Willows."

Ethan's eyebrows shot up. So he was able to meet her!

"We had a meeting scheduled today but the storm threw a lot of things out of whack."

"You're telling me, kid." The guard shook his head. "Okay, everybody in. Hurry up."

Ethan took his place in the passenger seat. Marco, Clarke and Xander all sat in the back. The cart pulled off, speeding down the illuminated brick path. Flying past buildings, more gardens, plenty of statutes. Rain and cold flew into Ethan's face. He hugged the bag closer to himself. He hoped he could meet the blonde at the lab.

More than that… What on Earth did Marco tell him? He wondered about the kind of meeting he was supposed to have with Ms. Willows. Was it to get into a program like the Young Aces? This point he was beginning to feel left out. He closed his eyes. No, that was none of his business. But it did open a world of new questions.

Behind him, Xander grabbed Marco by the shirt. "The hell is your deal? I don't need to be anywhere near that place." His whisper was more of a growl, one that made Marco cower under him.

"I-I was i-improvising!"

Clarke reached across, immediately pushing him off his roommate. Hard enough to nearly throw the guy off the cart.

"Keep your hands off him. Way I see it, we just saved your ass. When we hop out, fix your own problems."

Instead he snatched Marco by the shirt this time and shook him wildly. "Dude I could hug you! That was some quick thinking! I thought it was over for us."

"Please stop ruining my clothes." Marco moaned.

"It wouldn't have been a problem in the first place, if he didn't interrupt me!"

"Cut it out back there!" The bald man barked. "Don't make me turn this thing around!"


	3. Chapter 3

Summer stood in the middle of a spacious clearing in the forest. The grass was low. Small puddles were scattered everywhere, rippling as rain hit the ground. Instead of evergreens, crabapple trees grew along the edge of the opening. Some with burgundy leaves, others sprouted pink and white. Across from her on the opposite side stood Mr. Humphries, St. Margaret's normal type gym leader. He was still dressed in his sharp attire from the ceremony and over it, he sported a fitting trench coat. Beyond him, two paths twisted off, one to the far left as well as the right.

Standing directly behind her was her roommate Tasha, dressed in jeans and a jacket with her hood up. Long thin braids fell out of it, resting on her chest. The ends of them were decorated with yellow and pink beads. To her right stood Angelo, a pale blond dressed in a puffy brown coat and jeans. On her left was Rebecca, a rosy skinned teen sporting a windbreaker and a jean skirt. Underneath that was dark leggings and boots. Up top, she had on a beanie hat, auburn hair fell bundled on her shoulders. Each of the newest members of the Young Aces looked on quietly as it was Summer's turn to take on their new teacher. All she had to to do was last five minutes and she was in. One of them. She could do this!

Mr. Humphries pulled out a pokeball as lightning flashed over them. "Prepare yourself, miss Belair. I want to see your sharpest skills."

Summer snatched her own pokeball from her coat pocket, tossing her head to the left to flip her wet bangs from her eyes. Clenching her fist she took a step forward. "I'm ready!" She said but the booming thunder drowned out her voice.

They reared their arms back, fingers pressing the buttons on each of their capsules. Then the two of them threw their pokeballs into the air.

"Loudred, report!" Mr. Humphries bellowed.

"Psyduck, go!" Summer shouted.

The two pokemon landed in puddles, splashing water everywhere into the grass before their respective trainers. Summer didn't waste a second.

She pointed at her purple foe across the clearing.

"Psyduck, water gun! Full power!"

The yellow creature grabbed the sides of his head and lifted it slightly. Then he looked dead at the loudred and it took a step, opening his beak to unleash a jet of water.

Summer grinned when she saw a torrent of water fire from her psyduck's mouth instead. Strong as pressure that erupted from a fire hydrant, it rocketed across clearing. Loudred was able to raise one of her large arms in time to shield herself. Even then the big purple pokemon still wasn't prepared.

The heavy spray of water slammed hard into loudred, making her slide several feet backward in the wet grass. She growled, leaning her hefty body forward to push back, but psyduck's attack forced her to slide a few more inches away.

Summer's grin widened into a smile. She really could do this! Since her psyduck was a water type, this rain was giving his attack an extra kick, something she definitely needed right now.

Mr. Humphries hardly seemed worried. He nodded with approval. "Sending out a water type to take advantage of this weather, good!"

He raised a hand. "Loudred, fight back with shadow ball."

At his words a black, messy sphere of darkness began to grow in the palm of her free hand. It continued to expand between her fingers until it was the size of a beach ball. With a roar, she extended her arm in front of her, pushing the black ball into psyduck's water spray.

The shadow attack took off like a cannonball, hurtling back toward the psyduck and splitting the torrent of water. Making two soft streams from side to side, that splashed along the grass instead of assaulting loudred.

Summer's confidence quickly vanished as she watched her pokemon's attack get cut in half before her.

"Dodge it! Roll out of the way!" She yelled at her psyduck.

He quickly obeyed, closing his beak and rolled several feet to the right in order to avoid being squashed. Loudred's shadow ball crashed into the dirt in front of Summer. Tearing up the ground and kicking up chunks of soil with grass attached. Summer covered her eyes.

When the dirt settled, a hole about a foot deep remained in the ground, quickly filling with rainwater. Summer's eyebrows shot up. That was close. Too freaking close!

Across the campus, tones of white and sky blue made up the interior of the Winetta Lab, a spacious and open area with wide aisles stretching from one end to the other, like some sort of hardware store. The place was nice and cool; buzzing with activity despite going on lockdown in two hours. As Ethan, Clarke, Marco and Xander entered through more glass doors, men and women in coverall suits drove forklifts carrying giant cases of supplies past them.

Groups of Machoke, Machamp, Gurdurr and some Conkeldurr helped, lifting packaged things nearly three times their size. Adults in lab coats stood in the aisles. checking everything on the shelves, marking off boxes on their own clipboards. Ethan guessed the reason for the place looking like a shopping mall on a Saturday afternoon was because of the lockdown.

"This place is huge," Clarke marveled while observing the lab's main floor. He extended his arm, for the air to dry the rain off him. "Feels so good!" He started wringing water from his tank top, then he did his shorts.

Marco took off his glasses and blew the droplets of the rain off the lens. His actions left tiny wet sports to decorate his clothes. Surprisingly enough, his jeans remained dry.

"You're looking at all of the supplies for the semester. By the time school starts, the floor will look like a real lab. For now, second and third floors is where the good stuff is."

"You really know a lot about this place." Ethan noted, holding pushing the duffle bag to his side. His own hoodie and pants were soaked, but he'd just have to put up with it.

The four of them made their way to the back of the room, walking down an aisle. Marco lead the way of course, with Ethan next to him. Clarke was behind with Xander to his right. To either side of them, shelves towered over them, stuffed with crates of great balls from top to bottom.

"I'll know even more by winter break," Marco explained. "I'm going to spend all of my service learning hours around here."

"Damn, you got it all figured out, huh?" Clarke arched an eyebrow.

"You guys haven't even seen the best thing yet. There's an amazing room for pokemon eggs in the basement. Saying it's huge would be an understatement."

"Think we can check it out?!" Clarke asked excitedly.

Ethan was also very interested in visiting this basement.

"Not gonna happen," Xander rolled his eyes as he folded his arms. He was the only one completely dry. His chains on his pants jingled in his movements. "Noobs like you three aren't allowed to handle pokemon until September at the latest."

He elbowed Clarke. "Best thing you can do browse around. That's if they'll let you past the welcome desk."

Marco grinned. "They just might, Xander. I was supposed to meet Ms. Willows here to interview for a special program right after the ceremony."

Xander raised his eyebrows. "Special Program?"

"You mean like the Young Aces?" Ethan asked excitedly.

"Not exactly," Marco shook his head. "It's much smaller, although Ms. Willows is looking for capable students. The program is basically a year long observation. They give pokemon eggs to several selected candidates. The fun part is this—these pokemon are supposed to have special skills, moves that that their kind don't normally learn."

"Hold on." Clarke began, stopping in his tracks as they reached the middle of the aisle. They stepped aside to let a worker and his machamp hurry past them.

"How special we talkin' here?" He asked. "Like sandshrew learning thunderbolt special?"

"No, more like an Abra that learns ice punch or tri-attack." Xander sighed. "Special, not impossible."

"Exactly," Marco pointed at him. "A poochyena that learns thunder fang. Normally a move tutor would have to teach it that sort of skill."

Ethan stared at him, dumbfounded. "So you mean… you can get a pokemon as early as tonight from this interview?"

Xander waved a hand at him. "Typical. Freaking nerds get all the hook-ups." He grumbled under his breath.

Marco raised a finger. "N-not just me! I did say Ms. Willows is looking for capable students!"

He continued, clearing his throat. "If you're accepted though, it requires taking a very tough pokemon breeding class. And if any of your grades drop below a C, Ms. Willows can drop you from the program and take the pokemon back."

"Harsh," Ethan said. "Even after students have established a bond with the pokemon?"

"Rules are rules." Marco sighed.

"I don't care!" Clarke was so hyped he was running in place. "If it means snatching up a little buddy before everyone else, I'll work my _ass _off! Where do I sign up?"

They left the aisle with their hopes very high. Ethan couldn't help it. He spotted a help desk sitting beside a set of elevators a few feet off. There was an older, top heavy girl in a long sleeved shirt. Sporting a knotted ponytail sat behind the counter typing away at a computer. Next to her at another desktop was a guy. Blue eyes, clean cut dark hair. A light beard was already coming in in his face. He sported jeans and a black hoodie of his own.

They looked up when they all approached them.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" She asked.

"Yes you can!" Clarke beamed, before Marco nudged him in the side to stay quiet.

Xander rubbed his temples in his irritation. "I can't believe I'm with this moron." He mumbled.

"Hi," Ethan began leaning on the counter. "I'm trying to find the lost and found. My friends here need to see Ms. Willows."

The guy tilted his head, studying his friends quietly. "Do you three have an appointment?"

Marco approached the desk, pulling out his sheet of paper and handed it to him. After taking it, he skimmed over it for a quick second. "There's only one name on here and that's Marco Zapata."

The girl looked at them.

"She did mention that she was looking for capable candidates."

A loud electronic chime rang in their ears as the heavy elevator doors across from them slid open. Ms. Willows walked out, dressed in a hoodie that looked a size too big on her. With jeans that hugged her womanly curves and fuzzy sandals on her feet. She looked much more relaxed compared to the last time Ethan saw her. She was also holding a hot mug of tea in her hands.

The girl behind the desk smiled. "Ms. Willows! Right on time, as usual."

The woman blinked at them for a second as the car doors behind her practically glided to a close. "Oh? All of you need to see me?"

Several minutes later, everyone was inside an ivory colored room with floors so polished Ethan could see his murky reflection in them. There was a counter that extended before him from one end to the other. The messy haired boy and the girl with the ponytail worked quietly at the computers behind it. The heavy duffel he had brought with him sat beside her. Relief swelled in his chest, watching her track down that rude blonde to get his things back. Beyond her was a collection of tanned lockers.

Ms. Willows extended a hand toward them. "Ethan, these two are Drew and Camryn. While you're with me, they'll be sorting out your situation and tracking down your belongings."

He thanked them as they waved at him.

A leather couch sat off to his left against the wall. Most of the boys were seated there and Ms. Willows stood before them. Floating shelves sat on the opposite end of the room, each containing rows of pokeballs. Clarke took his position in front of them because he couldn't take his eyes off of the things.

"You certainly work fast Marco," Ms. Willows said, taking a careful sip of her tea. "You'll be an excellent addition to any department around here!"

The dark haired boy blushed, pushing his glass on his face. "Th-thank you ma'am."

She faced Ethan before looking at each of the boys. "I'm thrilled all of you are so eager to participate in this program. But before you all can become full fledged members of the Winetta Lab, I have a test for each of you."

Ethan held his breath. He assumed his friends did the same, because no one responded to her words, they didn't even move an inch. Noticing this, she giggled. "It won't be that bad, fellas. All of them might last the school year though, so prepare yourselves. Some of you may even get to battle."

A collective sigh spread across the room. Clarke jumped around and raised a fist as he let out a jubilant cheer. He certainly heard those words. "Battle? Finally!"

Ethan was just as excited, however it didn't last long as worry began to bubble to the front of his mind. He never had a pokemon before. And while he'd seen years and years worth of battles watching league tournaments, he was sure the real thing was much more difficult. He sank into his chair.

Xander was the next to stand from the couch, calmly sliding his hands into his pockets. "If it's a battle you're looking for, I'm the best guy here."

"Say what?!" Clarke turned to face him.

"Don't even start, coco puff." Xander shot him a look.

"Call me that again and we boxing, forget the pokemon." The lanky teen glared at him as he marched forward, his fists still tight. Marco had to step in front of him to keep Clarke from going any further.

Of course. How could Ethan forget about Xander's scraggy and that fight in the hall of his dorm? He had some skill, especially since his partner was the one at a type disadvantage back in his duel.

Ms. Willows raised her hand. "I like this fire gentlemen but save it for your tests. Now, there are a few reasons why I want all of you to participate in a pokemon battle. But we can discuss that later."

She snapped her fingers at the students working behind the counter. "Can one of you do me a favor and call Laura? Tell her to me on four with a tray."

"Got it!" Camryn flashed her a quick thumbs-up.

She smiled. "Thank you Cam," Then she turned her attention back to the eager boys. "Follow me, gentlemen."

Lead by Ms. Willows, the entire group took the elevator up to the fourth floor. Ethan heard the familiar, soft chime from earlier ring in his ears as the steel doors opened, revealing a room about as big as a high school gym. It looked like one too, only without all the nets for basketball and indoor soccer. There were no bleachers either, just hardwood floors. Decorated with white lines that created a very large rectangle along the floorboards.

Across from them, near the middle of the room, a red-haired woman wearing dark leggings that defined her fit figure. She also had on an open jean jacket, with a navy button up. In front of her sat a large cart full of red and white capsules in front of them. Real pokeballs! Three shelves full of pokemon for the taking!

"Awesome!" Clarke ran up to her. He pointed at a pokeball laying to the far left at the very top. He looked up at the ginger haired woman.

"Are these for us?"

The woman giggled. "They sure are. Can I have your name?"

He tried to compose himself. "Oh uh, my name's Clarke."

She nodded as Ms. Willows and the others approached them. "I'm Laura and I'll be your guide and referee this evening."

"Sweet! Good to meet ya, Laura!" He reached out to grab a pokeball but she Laura moved fast, swatting his hand away with a hard slap.

"Ow!" He pulled back quickly, moving his hands to his chest while rubbing the stinging fingers.

Ms. Willows smiled. "Sorry Clarke, but for this test, you won't get to just grab any pokemon."

She turned to face Ethan and the rest of his new friends. She pointed at him. "Quick, what is your favorite pokemon type?"

"Ground." Ethan replied.

She pointed at Marco.

"Psychic."

Xander was next.

"Dark."

Ms. Willows placed her hands on her hips. "Very nice, fellas. On the lower floors, we have plenty of pokemon that belong to those specific types. Tonight though, you won't be using those kinds of pokemon. A good trainer must be comfortable with managing a balanced team of many types. They may not be what you expect."

Xander folded his arms. "You can give me whatever. I'll make it work, teach."

"Wonderful!" Ms. Willows clapped her hands. "Since you were raring to go with Clarke downstairs, you two will be first."

Clarke grinned, turning to stare at Xander who rolled his eyes. "Let's just get this over with."

She turned to face Laura. "If you'll do the honors, please."

"It'd be my pleasure."

She pulled four pokeballs from off the shelf. Two off the second shelf at the far right end. One from the third row. Plus, one from the very bottom. Using fingers from both hands, she pressed the buttons on each of the red and silver capsules and tossed them into the air.

"Get ready guys! These pokemon will be your projects!" Laura said.

The boys all raised their heads, watching the pokeballs soar across the room, heading toward them. Ethan couldn't even tell which one came a specific shelf anymore. He held his breath. They began to fall toward the ground. Blinding flashes filled his vision as each one opened. Loud pops sounded off like fireworks. After the light faded, he found himself staring down at a cleffa.

His eyebrows shot up and he turned his head to look at the others. In front of Marco beside him, was a skorupi. Standing before Clake next to him, was a lillipup. And Xander was staring down at a buizel.

Clarke grinned, kneeling down to pet the head of his new companion. The puppy pokemon yipped happily, starting to wag his tail.

Marco bent over and extended a hand. To his surprise, the scorpion-like creature hopped onto his forearm and started crawling up his arm. He shuddered for a moment feeling her weight and her pointy little legs move along his skin. As she made her way up to his shoulders he couldn't help but laugh. She seemed very friendly.

When the buizel noticed Xander's eyes gazing down at her, she yelped timidly, spinning around to her back to him and hunched over, covering her face with her paws. He watched her silently for a few seconds, noticing her trembling. Then he sighed dropping his head while grumbling to himself.

Ethan felt something tugging one of the legs of his jeans, bringing him back to his own new pokemon. The pink creature stared up at him, tilting her head as she gripped his leg tightly. Honestly, he was expecting something a bit more battle ready, or a more robust looking pokemon. Cleffa didn't fit any of those bills. Even so, he bent over and picked up the pink creature with both hands. She was soft, warm and fuzzy in his arms, like holding a small teddy bear. He gently cradled her close to his chest. He didn't really know what the hell he was doing, but it felt right.

The cleffa blinked at him cutely. She closed her eyes and relaxed, snuggling against him. That instant his pride crumbled and she had captured his heart.

Ms. Willows and Laura exchanged looks, smiling at one another.

"Judging by your reactions gentlemen," Ms. Willows took a step forward, placing her hands on her hips. "It appears you have your work cut out for you. Some will have to work a little harder than others."

She faced Xander first. "As you can see, that buizel isn't the bravest of her kind. Since you're the student with the most trainer experience here, I expect you to give your new partner everything she needs to grow. Not just physically, but her confidence too. I want to see her as a regular on your new team by next spring."

Laura tossed him buizel's pokeball. He mumbled under his breath, catching it with one hand. Then he pressed the button on the capsule once again. A red beam of light shot out, enveloping around the trembling water type. It vanished half a second later, returning inside the thing.

"Fine," He said. "We done here?"

"You can go."

He stuffed buizel's pokeball in his pocket and spun around, stomping to the elevator.

Laura faced Ethan. "Your task will be similar. I'm sure you know that pokemon like cleffa need to have a very strong bond with their trainers to evolve. I expect to see a clefairy by next spring."

Ms. Willows approached him, handing him her pokeball. Ethan swallowed nervously. How on earth was he going to make that happen?

She went on, pointing to Marco. "You! I expect you to know that skorupi inside and out by next spring. I want to see not just one, but two effective counters to your partner's weaknesses. One for both of her types."

Laura giggled, folding her arms under her bosom. "Clarke, you enjoy pokemon battles, right? Your task will be like Marco's. And by the spring, I want a herdier in here, staring me down!"

"You'll receive your pokemon eggs when classes begin in a few weeks," Ms. Willows nodded. "That's all gentlemen."


	4. Chapter 4

Calvin could definitely see them as he stood in a large grassy field as big as a baseball park. The Scarlet Forest was particularly beautiful this time of year. Hills of red grass surrounded him, coming up to his knees. At first, the black helicopter was a dark spot in the clear afternoon sky. Now, while it lowered toward the field in front of him, the chopper was bigger and certainly much louder. Flocks of fletchling and fletchinder fled from the noise.

The helicopter had some kind of bright blue design on it, an insignia of a crown with the blade of a large sword going through it. Despite him being a good amount of feet away from the landing zone, powerful winds from the thing whipped whipped across the field, making the grass sway like trees in a violent storm.

Calvin couldn't help but shield himself, raising an arm to cover his nose and mouth. The winds blew black his gray blazer. His dark tie flailed around his neck, slightly choking him like it had a mind of its own.

In the distance he noticed the door of the helicopter slide open. A woman jumped out first, wearing heels, a buttoned navy blue blazer, with a matching pencil skirt that flaunted her womanly curves. Her brunette locks were tied into a curly yet loose bun.

A tall, dark haired man immediately followed her. His face was clean cut and his locks brushed the tips of his ears. He also sported a suit and tie like Calvin, only his matched the shorter woman by his side. Together, they approached him.

"Kenneth and Kaylin," Calvin began, nodding to them in acknowledgment. "Glad you two could make it out here this afternoon."

Kenneth extended a hand, Calvin quickly shook it. His grip strong.

"We heard you all had a great turnout for the new semester." Kenneth smirked.

Calvin spun around and the three of them started to walk away from the chopper in the grass.

"I've already found some promising young trainers," Calvin said. "They're sure to be phenomenal aces this year."

"Exciting to hear!" Kaylin flashed him a great smile. "Do you mind if we take a look around and meet these fantastic new students?"

"Not at all," Calvin shook his head. "My home is your home, as the saying goes."

He continued raising a finger. "While you're here, I hope the both of you will indulge me."

Kenneth stepped on top of a broken tree log hidden in the grass. "What's on your mind?"

"I know I'm not the point person in this entire situation, so forgive me if I am overstepping my boundaries here. But I can't help but be curious."

"We have nothing to hide, Mr. Humphries." Kaylin said. "What are you curious about?"

He took a minute before responding, forming his words as politely as possible. "Your organization. What is Team Valor? What exactly is your mission in all of this?"

Kaylin and Kenneth smiled.

The Winetta Lab seemed just as busy as last night when Ethan stepped through the doors. Pokemon and workers alike continued to hurry back and forth all over the first floor. He did notice that there wasn't as many towering shelves as the day before though. Appearing less like a superstore and more like an actual lab. Long wooden tables were being set up in various corners with large boxes on top of them. A few of them were open already and Ethan spotted dark wires that attached to computer monitors.

The weather was nice and warm for the afternoon. Ethan sported jean shorts and a simple t-shirt. His cleffa was on top of him, riding his shoulders as if she were his own daughter. Now that he finally had a pokemon there was no way on Earth he would leave her in her pokeball, especially after Clarke explained that it could lead to him talking to lots of cute girls throughout the school year. He hated to use his new partner in such a way, but at the same time—as long as he was in control of it—a little popularity wouldn't hurt.

Camryn and Drew were not at the help desk beside the elevators but they did inform him to let himself into the lost and found whenever he arrived. He did just that. To his surprise he found Camryn, and two other girls in the small white room when he entered. The blonde, Summer, was sitting on the counter like she owned the place. Still sporting those neat braids above an ear on one side of her head. The rest of her hair was tied back to a ponytail. She wore dark leggings and a baggy shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows. A psyduck sat on her lap wearing a necklace with a teardrop pendant. Her backpack was on the floor under her.

An ebony skinned girl stood to her right, wearing a frilly white dress with a brightly colored blouse to match. Her braids fell to her back. Hovering next to her left elbow was a cutiefly wearing a cute, glittering scarf around her neck.

In corner behind them, Camryn leaned on the white marble, beside the same bulky computer as she was last night. Today she was wearing another pair of jeans and a crop top that really flaunted how top heavy she was. Her meditite sat with his legs crossed in front of her on the counter, meditating quietly to himself.

"Ooooooh my gooooooshhhhhh!" Camryn exclaimed, clasping her hands over her chest. The blonde and her friend turned to face her.

Her words also made him stop dead in his tracks in the middle of the room to stare at her. "Huh? What?"

His cleffa blinked cutely at her too.

She pointed at the star shaped monster. "Your cleffa is absolutely adorable!"

"Oh," He scratched his cheek sheepishly. "Thanks."

With that, he took her down off his shoulders and held her in his arms, close to his chest. "This is Claire, everyone."

Camryn's smile brightened. "Aw, she's an angel."

The ebony skinned girl hurried right up to him, getting inches from his face. Sweet baby Arceus, she was so close, she could have stolen a kiss. Her face smelled like strawberries.

"You like fairy types too, huh?"

Ethan took a step back, a little put off by how this girl ignored boundaries. "Honestly, they're not at the top of my list," he looked down at at the pink pokemon, feeling a smile grow on his lips. "But this one is really growing on me."

She giggled. "That's good! Don't let the cuteness fool you now. They're sturdier than you think."

She extended a hand toward her cutiefly. "This is Ribbon."

"Cuuuu~" The pokemon said. She buzzed over to Claire and the two of them began conversing.

"_Hi~" _Claire waved at the flying bug. Her voice was a little squeaky. "_I love your scarf_, _it's so shiny_!" She jumped out of her partner's arms and carefully landed on the polished tile.

"_Thank youzzzz_," Ribbon buzzed happily, floating down to meet Claire. "_Tasha got it for me yesterday_."

"_I wish I had something cool like that…"_

The blonde noticed his cleffa admiring cutiefly's sparkling scarf. She hopped down from the counter and bent over, placing her psyduck on the floor. Then she turned to her book bag and unzipped one of the smaller folds in the front, beginning to search for something. After a minute, she pulled out a bright bow.

"Hey," Summer started, approaching the two of them. She nodded at Ethan. "Mind if I do something with your cleffa?"

He arched an eyebrow. "And what would this 'something' be?"

When she reached them, she kneeled down to the fluffy and pink creature, holding the bow out in one hand. "Claire, check this out."

With that she tied it tightly around soft tuft of curly fur between her ears. She smiled. "There we go~"

Claire's eyes practically sparkled with appreciation. She turned to face Ethan and looked up at him. He grinned, giving her a thumbs up. "You look great!"

"_Yay!_" Claire bounced up and down, spinning in circles like a ballerina.

The blonde placed her hands on her hips. "Consider that my apology for yesterday. I was caught up in a whirlwind of stuff that had me running like a chicken without a head."

"It's alright," Ethan waved a hand at her. "I apologize too. I didn't have to react the way I did. Yesterday was just a lot to take in."

"First day is always the craziest." Camryn closed her eyes, raising a finger.

Summer shook her head. "Anyway, I'm Summer. This is my roommate Tasha." She then pointed to her pokemon. "And this golden boy is Oliver."

Claire and Ribbon were quick to go greet the psyduck.

"_This is so great! We all have something flashy to show off_!" Claire exclaimed happily.

Oliver proudly held out his necklace with the teardrop pendant. "_Mine is the coolest of all_, _though_."

"_Hey_!" Ribbon buzzed angrily in his face, making him jump back, and fall on his ass. "_Be nice_! _Bzzzz!_"

"Nice to have faces to the names." Ethan chuckled. He quickly looked down for a second, unsure of what to say next. Camryn stepped in mercifully, pulling his bag out of a locker and placing it on the marble.

"Bet you're happy to see this." She said.

"I am!" He replied, hurrying over to the counter and unzipping it to check the belongings within. When everything was accounted for he zipped it back up, moving the bag to the floor in front of him.

Claire noticed the meditite sitting at the end of the counter by himself in the corner of the room, not far from her trainer. She walked over to him and looked up. "_Um, excuse me, sir. What are you doing_?"

"_Ooooohhmmm_." Meditite said.

The cleffa tilted her head. "Sir?"

"_Oooohhhmmmm_."

Ribbon and Oliver joined her. Then Ribbon floated up to the meditite and buzzed around him softly as she examined him.

He opened an eye, appearing a little irritated. "..._What? I'm busy_." He spoke in a dry tone.

"_You don't look busy." _She replied. "_You're azzzzz still as a dandelion on a hot day._"

"_I'm trying to meditate_!"

"_Well what's that_?" Claire asked, tapping the corner of her mouth.

Oliver narrowed his eyes. "_Forget about him, girls. It's obvious this jerk wants to be alone."_

At those words, the meditite opened both eyes and glared at him for a moment. Then he relaxed, closing them once more. "_On second thought, you're not even worth the time_."

Oliver didn't like that, not one bit. He opened his beak slightly, spitting a small stream of water at the blue creature, hitting him dead in the face.

Droplets of water splashed against Ribbon, forcing her to hover away quickly. Some water even got on Ethan, making him spin around. "What the—"

He turned just in time to catch Camryn's meditite jump up from his sitting position on the counter, raising a fist while water rolled down his body. "_You will regret that, Goldie._"

"Uh, guys…" Ethan began, getting the attention of the girls.

"_Bring it on_!" Oliver quacked loudly. "_I'm not afraid of you, asshooOOOOH_!"

Summer stepped in swiftly, picking up her pokemon and stepping back. "Oliver! The hell's your problem?"

Camryn yanked out her pokeball, frowning. She pressed the button at the center and a red beam shot out, enveloping around the wet pokemon.

Once it disappeared, she sighed. "Sorry guys. Aiden isn't exactly on the friendly side. He's more of a loner, even with the rest of my team."

Tasha's eyebrows shot up. "The rest of your team? How many pokemon have you caught?"

Not too far across school grounds, the glass doors of the library swung open, allowing Marco and Clarke to step out onto the campus, feeling cool breezes of the afternoon tug softly of their clothes. Clarke sported a tan tank top, a denim vest and jean shorts, along with a backpack. Marco also had his backpack, with jeans, plus a plaid button-up. Dagger, the nickname Clark gave his lillipup, trotted out beside him, happily wagging his tail.

Ahead of them, the brick path split into a fork. The right path led back to the dorms and the park beyond that. The way to the left directed them to Winetta lab and a little further, the Great Woods, which was off campus. A patch of green big enough to hold a school playground sat beside Marco. Some of students relaxed alone under the the shade of tall trees with their pokemon. Others hung out in groups, laughing, chatting and engaging in battles.

Above the boys in the air, a small cluster of hoppip and skiploom floated past, carried by cooler, stronger winds. Next to Clarke on his side, was the side of a yellow building. A pokemon shop to be exact. The place was closed though, and wouldn't be opening until classes started. Across the road beyond the fork was another generous patch of green. Upperclassmen were gathering there, with huge groups of new students for more campus tours.

Marco pushed his glasses onto his face before reaching into his pocket to pull out a small notebook. "Alright, the next place is… um..."

"If you say we're going to another library, I'm gonna lose my shit, dude," Clarke said grabbed the straps of his backpack. "We've had our noses in books all morning."

His shorter friend rolled his eyes. "Excuse me for trying to give us a head start," He closed his notebook.

"I mean, books are helpful sure," Clarke shrugged. "But they won't give us a head start by themselves. We gotta go out there and get active too!"

"Fine, what do you suggest we do now?"

Clarke pointed to all the students enjoying themselves under the trees across from them. "Battle, of course! There's plenty of students to pick from."

Marco turned his head, gazing out at his fellow classmates in the small field. Then he looked back at his roommate. "If you want to go out there and fight everything that moves, go ahead. Keep in mind you only have one pokemon while you're out there."

He continued, pressing a thumb to his chest. "I'm going to stock up on pokeballs at the lab and go catch some pokemon."

Clarke stopped walking, placing one hand on his hip. The other rubbed his chin as he thought about something. Dagger looked up at him, tilting his head inquisitively.

Marco took a few more steps before slowly turning to face his friend. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"Hate to admit it, but you're probably right," Clarke sighed dropping his head. "Damn it all…"

Marco grinned. "Winetta Lab it is, then."


	5. Chapter 5

It felt as if Ethan had been walking for hours. Perhaps two, maybe more. He didn't bring his phone with him to check the time. Still dressed in a the same shirt and jean shorts, the arches of his feet hurt and that in turn made his calves sore. His thighs burned, everything below his waist didn't feel the way it should. Worse than all that, the sun was blazing in the clear afternoon sky. Out here in the woods, it felt warmer than it did around campus. His head was hot and the back of his neck burned. His discomfort was beginning to show on his face; he kept a constant frown on now. He didn't know the Scarlet Forest was so far out.

When Clarke and Marco first presented the idea of catching new pokemon, he was so excited his heart raced. Everyone was on board too, from Xander to Ms. Willows herself. She said it'd be a good a time for new students to study the habitats and behaviors of many woodland pokemon. Everyone had stocked up on items from potions and to various kinds of pokeballs.

Now that the group was finally out here, this little excursion was seeming less and less appealing to him. Ethan didn't know a thing about catching pokemon! His stomach plunged in a wash of fear. Sure he'd seen hundreds of trainers on television as well as the internet do it. They made it look easy. But Ethan sucked at sports and games involving throwing balls or other objects. He couldn't throw something to save his life, bad aim.

They were quite a way off from the campus, walking through grass that grew up to his knees. He had to continuously step on a bunch of thick stems to stop a cluster of them from shooting up his shorts. Crooked trees and lush looking bushes taller than him surrounded them. The buzz of wild pokemon nearby filled the air. Yet even so Ethan could hear rushing water in the distance. They must be near some river or stream.

Ms. Willows was leading the way now, dressed in boots, a light t-shirt and cargo pants. She had her hoodie tied around her waist and sun hat on top of her head. Everyone walked together as one big group for a good stretch, laughing and joking with each other. The further they walked though, the quieter they all became, focusing their energy on keeping their feet moving. Ethan glanced around him. Behind him Clarke looked just as miserable as he did, still in his tank top, denim vest and shorts.

Xander was also upset, dressed in his usual dark shirt and cargo shorts covered with heavy chains. Ethan was beginning to understand that he probably always had a scowl on his face.

The past few times he'd seen him, he looked as though something or someone had pissed him off. Except when he spoke to Camryn, that is. Everything the older, heavy topped girl did got a smile out of him. Next to Xander, Marco remained in his plaid top and jeans, he was busy with his phone. Saving the trail to the Scarlet Forest on a map. Every once in awhile he looked up from the screen to make sure the group wasn't leaving him.

Up front, Camryn and Tasha was keeping pace with the teacher. Camryn had on her crop top and jeans, Tasha remained in her frilly blouse and dress. Summer was walked ahead of him by herself continuing to wear her dark leggings and a baggy shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows.

"It won't be long now everyone," Ms. Willows said, peering over a shoulder. "We're almost there! Make sure you pay attention to the scenery, you'll understand why it's called the Scarlet forest."

It was a slow change. Starting with only the tips of grass becoming a deep crimson color. As well as certain leaves on trees and bushes. Their path ended at steep hill that rose upward.

"This way." Ms. Willows instructed, beginning her march. Everyone but Camryn and Tasha groaned.

A gentle breeze tugged at Ethan's clothes. Sure enough, the higher they hiked, the rest of the green around them turned a dark shade of red. When they reached the top, the rest of the air in their lungs had been taken away.

They stood before a meadow of burgundy that stretched for miles before them. An abundance of scarlet trees lined the horizon, far as his eyes could see but it seemed like it'd take the rest of the day to reach the other side. Tall grass, huge hills and giant shrubs filled the space between them and the opposing edge of the forest.

"Wooooow," Clarke put his hands on his hips, enjoying a strong gust of summer air. "This is amazin! It certainly makes all that walking worth it."

"Pssh." Xander rolled his eyes.

Tasha looked on in horror. "This… this is terrible!"

"That's more like it," Xander wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"You don't understand," Camryn shook her head. "Normally this meadow is full of colorful berries. It's supposed to look like the end of a freaking rainbow out here! What… what happened to everything?"

She pointed to a particular bush not far from them. "Plants like that one over there grow sweet berries that students use in the bake-off in the Halloween festival."

"Everything looks… so ordinary." Tasha said with sorrow. She pulled out her pokeball. "This is where I caught my cutiefly. If she saw this place right now she'd be heartbroken! They need this place to thrive."

"Even without all that stuff though, it's still a beautiful place!" Clarke said, attempting to cheer up the girls. "Come on, don't be so glum."

Ms. Willows narrowed her eyes. "You're right Arthur. The meadow is breathtakingly astounding. The problem remains, however. Last week I ventured out here to check. Everything was fine then. What could have happened to all the fruit that normally grow around here? As Tasha already explained, certain pokemon of the forest need an area like this to survive."

"Could it be a pokemon's doing?" Marco asked. "A possible herd that has grown out of control? Deerling are natives to these parts."

Ethan blinked at Marco, remembering the massive group of deerling he and his mom had seen during the first day. They seemed so pure. He refused to believe they were responsible.

"It could be a possibility." Ms. Willows said. "Good guess, Marco."

"It can't be!" Ethan argued.

"Why not?" Summer tilted her head. "That seems really logical, actually."

"What about people? Someone could be stealing all the berries, right?" Ethan explained.

"To wipe an area like this out, that's a lot people, Ethan." Camryn said.

"The forest is protected, genius," Xander countered. "Outsiders aren't allowed out here."

"_Some_ people don't always follow the rules." Clarke shot him a look.

The teacher nodded. "If that is the case everyone, we have a big problem on our hands."

Ms. Willows turned to face her students. "Our task for the day is to investigate! The good thing about all of this is that either of Ethan and Marco's cases leave clues. Let your pokemon help and see what you can find."

The woman reached into every pocket of her cargo shorts and pulled out three flare guns. She passed two of them out to Xander and Camryn.

"We'll split into groups," She explained. "Cam and Xander will be captains."

Once he got his tool, Xander shoved it into the waist of his shorts and sighed. "Baby sitting. What a drag…" He mumbled under his breath.

She turned to Tasha, also handing her a flare. "You'll be my honorary pick for the day. Please act responsibly."

Tasha nodded eagerly. "I won't let you down!"

Then she faced Ethan and his classmates. "Ethan, you go with Tasha. Arthur, you team with Camryn."

Xander shot a glare at Clarke.

Ms. Willows went on. "Summer, with me. That leaves Marco and Xander." She took out her own flare and stuffed it into her waistband. "Spread out kids. We meet back here in one hour."

With that the pairs split up, going down the opposite side of the hill, into the clearing. Tasha and Ethan headed to the far east, back into the woods. Ms. Willows and Summer remained behind to check around the meadow for anything. Then they'd make their way northeast, to the heart of Scarlet Forest. Camryn and Clarke went to the west, toward the still end of the forest river. Xander and Marco traveled northwest, further up river near the rapids.

**Twenty Minutes Later...**

Clarke stood on a small beach of gravel before the river. Around him red trees joined other plants in growing along tall, jagged cliffs. Swarms of beedrill buzzed past high over him. Hoppip floated by, pushed along by the warm breezes. The water was crystal clear in the sun; he could see straight to the bottom.

Several feet off flocks of swanna and ducklett floated by on the calm surface. A small group of buizel, lotad and surskit were with them. Looking down, he kicked a few rocks into the water, scaring off some barboach that had swam near shallow waters.

He turned around to face Camryn who was searching through some bushes at the edge of the forest not too far off.

"Nothing over here!" Clarke yelled out.

Cam returned to her full height and put her hands on her hips, her buxom breasts bouncing within her crop top. "Yeah, I'm getting a big fat bunch of nothing over here too."

She pulled her cell from the back pocket of her jeans to message Ms. Willows. "Alright, guy. Let's move!"

Clarke spotted a large oval shaped rock ahead with bunch of wooper playing on top of it.

"Woo!" One said, using its tail to throw mud around.

"Per, per, per!" Shouted a second, bouncing around the group.

He smirked, pointing to it. "Lemme' check that rock before we go."

Camryn waved a hand at him. "Knock yourself out, bud."

He began to make his way up the rocky shore, creeping like a wacky hunter in an animated kid's show. Sneakily lifting a quick ball from his pocket. The wild pokemon were on to him though. The wooper quickly scattered into the water as he approached, making big splashes in the river.

"Wooper, woo!"

"Per, per, per!"

Clarke frowned and dropped his head. "Damn it…" Catching a pokemon was going to be tougher than he thought. Even with his quick balls all managed to get out here so far was one.

He checked the rock once more, just in time to spot a yanma land on it. His nostrils flared in determination, Clarke wouldn't let this one get away. Straightening himself, he raised a leg, rearing his arm back while pushing down on the button in the middle of the blue capsule.

"Go!" He yelled as threw his pokeball the way a professional pitcher did.

The quick ball spun like a globe as it sailed through the air towards the flying insect.

Yanma turned his way, tilting its head. "Ma!"

Acting fast, it did a full spin, using its powerful tail to swat Clarke's capturing device right to the ground. The thing broke open in a loud crack upon hitting the gravel.

"Tch." Clarke scowled. He pulled out another quick ball. It was time to bring out his brand new partner. It was the only one capable of taking on Yanma.

He tossed it into the air, releasing it onto the the gravel shore. A light as bright as the sun flashed across the beach. A mareep jumped out, sparks of electricity shooting from the golden orb at the end of her tail.

"Mareep! Fry it!"

Camryn looked up from her phone to watch Clarke engage in battle. She chuckled. "What the hell, I could use a good break." With that she sat down Indian style, placing her cell on her lap.

Mareep galloped full speed at the large rock, lowering her head. Jolts of lightning continued to flash from the round ball on her tail.

Yanma's wings started to vibrate audibly as he flapped them at high speeds, also kicking up a faint cloud of dust around him. Soft waves rippled in the water nearby. Clarke realized he was warning his partner. The pokemon would attack if provoked. Clarke grinned. Exactly what he wanted.

"Bring it then!" He pointed. "Mareep, thundershock!"

His electric sheep leapt high into the air, angling her glowing tail over her back.

"Eeeeeep!" She cried, firing off a powerful bolt of electricity that struck as fast and hard as a bolt in a thunderstorm.

Yanma kicked off the boulder, hurling a gust of air along the beach. He flew toward Clarke with the speed of a bullet. The teen clenched his jaw, standing his ground. Right before the bug seemed on course to slam into him, he rocketed into the sky, throwing another strong wind at him. His afro swayed back and forth. Clark had no choice but to cover his face or risk being pelted with pebbles and dirt.

Mareep's attack was a few seconds late, striking the rock. She began to fall back to the ground, a deafening explosion echoed through the sky. Her assault carried enough power to break a large chunk of rock off the side; putting a scorched crater the size of a baseball in the stone. The broken piece cannonballed several feet off in the river, scaring away the swanna and ducklett. Smaller bits rolled down the beach.

The wild bug was hurtling straight toward mareep, preparing to crash into her side full force before she touched land.

Clarke grit his teeth. "Mareep look out! Dodge it!"

Camryn shook her head. "She's not dodging that."

True to her words the bug caught his partner in the air, ramming his head in her ribs. The force of the attack made mareep screech in pain and sent her tumbling across the gravel, rocks flew everywhere. The yanma wouldn't let up though. He sped toward his foe again, moving so fast Clarke lost sight of it.

Mareep could barely stand before the wild yanma hit her again, smashing his head directly against her own in an unrelenting quick attack. Clarke's little buddy yelped out once more as she cartwheeled back and slammed into to oval shaped boulder hard.

"Ooooh." Camryn flinched, almost feeling the pain mareep was in. "Ouch."

"Don't quit, Mareep!" Clarke yelled. "On your feet! Just a lil' more!"

His partner struggled to rise, all four of her legs trembled as she fought to stand. Not to mention she had a pretty big bruise in the middle of her head. "Maaaaa!" She lifted her head to bellow once she steadied herself.

Clarke raised a fist. "Atta'girl !" If his knew his pokemon right, her ability should be kicking in by now. He needed Mareep to put all her strength in this next attack.

Yanma was floating above the creek across from him, watching intently. The hum of his wings was making even more waves ripple through the water. After hearing his foe's battle cry, he took off, gunning mareep's way for a third time. Preparing to finish the fight. The river parted as it flew, revealing a bed of smooth pebbles beneath it.

"Get ready!" Clarke ordered. "Use charge!"

"Reeeeeee…" Mareep growled, raising her tail again. The bulb began to shine, making her coat of wool also glow as it powered up her coming thundershock.

Once yanma hit land, a small shock of electricity coursed through it, locking up it body. His wings froze and the pokemon let loose a shrill buzz before crashing into the gravel, throwing dust and dirt everywhere. Yanma's momentum carried him for a few seconds, forcing the bug to slide to a stop.

"Hah! How ya' like mareep's static ability?" Clarke smiled. "Now hold this thundershock!"

"MAAAREEEEEP!" The pokemon hollered, unleashing a massive bolt of lightning from her tail.

This go around the shocking assault hit its target and hit hard. The ground trembled while an extraordinary radiance covered the entire beach. Sparks popped like fireworks.

Moving quickly, Clarke yanked out another quick ball. "You're mine!" He said, launching it into his mareep's light show.

When everything cleared, his pokeball sat in the middle of the shore, laying on its side. The red light in the center had just vanished.

"Hell yeah!" Clarke cheered. He ran to the capsule, picked up it and then bolted to his partner's side.

"Nice job, mareep!" He rubbed the pokemon's head. "You're tough as nails, you know that? My pop would love you."

"Eeeep!" The sheep looking monster replied jovially.

He returned the creature to his pokeball. "Take a good rest!"

Camryn stood on her feet, giving him a slow clap. "Not bad at all! For a minute I thought you were gonna' get your butt handed to you."

He brushed his shoulders. "Nah! It was all strategy."

That made her laugh. "Uh-huh. You just lucked out, that's the truth."

Clarke stomped his foot. "A win is a win, damn it!"

The sound of a gunshot reverberated through the air, making Camryn and Clarke crane their head to the sky. Flocks of spearow soared from trees. In the distance, a green flare smoked among the clouds.

"Somebody's found something," Camryn said. "Let's jet."

**TEN MINUTES EARLIER…**

The vegetation on the east end of the forest was much thicker than anything Ethan and Tasha had encountered so far. Tasha had already caught a new pokemon, an oddish she simply nicknamed Grace. He was anxious to find his first catch.

He could barely see what was around him now. There was nothing to follow, that made him nervous.

"I don't like this…" Tasha started to walk slowly as the ground below her feet suddenly began to fall. They were going downhill again.

"Me neither," Ethan said out of breath. Losing his way was a real possibility out here. Chances of getting injured were higher than ever. The trees and the shrubbery were closing in on them.

They pushed their way out of a thicket. Causing a group of scatterbug to dart off in all directions along a dirt road.

Wait… a road? Ethan did a full spin to check his new surroundings. Apparently, the hill was on the side of some narrow path that snaked on ahead of them. Beside him, a few more feet off he noticed a tall steel fence followed the road, disappearing behind more scarlet overgrowth. Because this forest was protected he suspected it was to keep them in.

Tasha clutched her chest and exhaled. Dropping her purse, she grabbed Ethan's arm as she put a hand on a knee and bent over for a rest. "That was scary. We could be falling off a cliff right now."

She looked at him. "How about we avoid those dense areas, if we can?"

He glanced back up the hill. "How will we get back to the meadow?"

"I'm sure there's another, safer way around here somewhere." Tasha rose to her full height, picking red leaves off her blouse. Then she dusted her dress off and gathered her purse.

Ethan could barely say a word. The ear-splitting sound of his pokeball cracking open filled his ears. A flash of light erupted from a pocket of his backpack. His cleffa unexpectedly appeared at his side. The two students quickly looked down.

"Cleff! Fa! Fa!" The pink pokemon was waving her arms up and down frantically. "_Someone needs help! I can feel it!_"

"Hey!" Ethan exclaimed. "Why are you out of your ball? I didn't call you."

Swinging his bookbag around to his side, he started to fish around for the capsule. He had to return her.

Tasha giggled, putting a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "Relax. Let it go for a second. It seems like she's trying to tell you something. Let's focus on that before you put her back inside."

Ethan looked back at his cleffa, joining his classmate in kneeling before cleffa.

"Hello cutie," Tasha smiled, tilting her head. "You got something to tell us?"

"Cleffa! Cle, cle, fa! Cleffa!" She explained ardently, then pointed ahead to an area of the gate nearby.

"_A pokemon needs help! This way_!" Without another word the pokemon took off, her little legs darting down the dirt road. It was faster than it looked.

"Claire, stop! Don't run off!" Ethan worriedly hurried after her.

"Ah! Wait up!" Tasha was on his heels. She yanked out her pokeball. "Ribbon, keep up with her!"

She tossed the red and white capsule high above her and it opened midair, releasing the fuzzy bug.

"Cuuuuuu!" She zipped off per her trainer's orders. "_I'm on it_!"

Ethan glanced up as his friend's partner flew ahead of him, weaving between the long branches of trees above. Startling several bird types were resting in their nests.

What on earth was Claire doing? Did it not respect him because he was a new trainer? He was already starting to regret accepting the stupid thing. But would it have made a difference in what he chose? All pokemon had the potential to disobey. Was he really cut out to be a trainer?

He and Tasha followed his pokemon around a bend, watching it take a take a sharp right turn and disappear behind a cluster of bushes. Ribbon did a swift dive and went in right after it.

"Claire! STOP!" He yelled.

Ethan followed the two pokemon through the grove. He jumped into it, lifting his hands to protect himself from the sharp twigs. Rather than scratch up his face, they raked at his arms, leaving tiny cuts all over his skin. Once he cleared the bushes he found Claire and Ribbon standing before a rather large hole in the fence, big enough for an adult person to crawl through. However, that was not what was concerning his cleffa.

The two pokemon had gathered around a bellsprout, who had gotten one of its leaves caught on the broken, jagged end of the gate. It lay on its back in the grass, looking battered, bruised and extremely fatigued, to the point to where its lips were shriveled and losing color. He figured it must have been here for a long while, just withering away.

"Fa… cleff…" His partner rubbed the tired pokemon's head gently. "_Poor girl_…"

"Flyyyyyy…." Cutiefly said it a solemn buzz as it floated over her. "_Thizzzz izzn't good at all_."

Ethan kneeled next to the bellsprout. He turned to cleffa. "Was this what you were running to?"

"Cleffa, cleff." She nodded.

He glanced down at the bellsprout. What was the deal here? How did she know about this? Did cleffa know this pokemon before it was captured? Turning to the huge hole in the fence he noticed that all the grass underneath it had been ripped out and replaced with deep grooves of damp soil. Something, or someone had definitely been crawling through here…

He watched the wild bellsprout weakly turn its head toward him. Ethan frowned. He couldn't leave her like this. He examined the broken bit on the fence the grass type was caught on. The ends looked closer to a candle wick after it had been lit. Twisted and charred black. With a lot of rust. Reaching out, he used two fingers to try and straighten the piece of metal the bellsprout's leaf was stuck on. The sharp bit had gone right through the rubbery green.

He tugged on it; to his surprise the jagged end broke straight off. He tossed it away then began to work on bellsprout. Moving as slowly and gently as possible, he lifted the hurt pokemon's limb off.

"Sprout!" She cried out in shrill voice. The creature shut her eyes and her body trembled.

"It's okay, it's done." He said, hesitant to touch it any further.

"Oh my God!" Tasha shouted after bursting through the bushes behind him. "Did you battle this bellsprout?"

He shook his head. "Claire found it like this. I think this was what she wanted us to see." He looked up at Tasha. "Maybe they knew each other before?"

"I don't think so," Tasha replied, dropping herself beside him. "All of the pokemon on that cart were hatched from the eggs in the lab."

She rubbed her chin. "Cleffa, Clefairy and Clefable are kind of a mysterious bunch. Not much is known about them. What if it sensed bellsprout was in danger and came to help?"

Ethan stared at his partner for a second. "I'd say she has one big heart." He grinned. He patted her head, making the pink creature close her eyes and sigh softly. "You scared me for a minute. But all you wanted to do was to help someone, huh?"

"Cleffa!"

He felt a weight settle off his stomach. Claire's intentions were good and pure. Though it may have been a bit reckless.

Tasha pulled off her purse, leaning toward the bellsprout. "Don't worry, I'll fix you up!" She started to dump all kinds of items out. Boxes of bandages and gauze. Lotion, sunscreen, a couple bottles of water. She had stuff for pokemon as well. Revival shards, bags of berries, super potions, full heals, elixirs.

She wrapped the bellsprout's left leaf in gauze and bandages. As well as the top of its head. After a revive and a one of her potions the grass creature was looking a bit better but she was still too weak stand or move very far on her own.

Tasha wiped the side of her face with the back on her hand. "There! I've done all I could with my items. We saved it, thanks to Claire, but she needs a pokemon center."

She smiled at him. "Well? What are you waiting for? Get out a pokeball!"

Ethan arched an eyebrow. "What? Why me?"

Tasha sat on her calves and folded her arms. "It's obviously yours. Are you telling me you'd leave this little one out here to end up hurt all over again?"

"You're the one that fixed it up!" Ethan made an x using his forearms. "Don't put it on me."

It was bad enough the first pokemon he got was Cleffa. He couldn't take another small, cutesy type again. He'd rather have something rough and sturdy, like geodude. Or a magnemite!

His classmate waved a finger at him. "Ah-ah-aaah. Your partner found it first. Bellsprout was the whole reason she left us behind."

She pointed at the cute little fairy creature. "Don't you see? Cleffa is a pokemon from the stars! Capturing bellsprout here is your destiny."

"Oh _please_," Ethan groaned, facepalming his forehead. "I make my own destiny. And it doesn't involve a bellsprout!"

Hearing this, bellsprout looked down, seeming absolutely crushed from Ethan's coldness. "B-bell…"

"Now look what you did! You hurt its feelings!" Tasha flicked his nose, causing him to yelp and cover his face.

"Fa! Fa! Fa!" His cleffa gave him a mean look, puffing out her cheeks. "_I wanna be her friend_!"

"Not you too!" He whined. Ethan sighed in defeat. If he walked off now, he'd feel like a total jerk, plus Tasha and Claire wouldn't let him hear the end of it. Going through his bag he found an empty capsule. He pushed on the button to expand the pokeball to the original size.

Ethan held it out in front of bellsprout.

"Don't forget to apologize, otherwise it might not accept you." Tasha instructed.

He rolled his eyes. Then Ethan closed his them to calm himself. When came back to reality to meet the wild pokemon's tiny beady irises he felt himself freeze up. Ummmm...

"I don't know what to say." He said.

Tasha shrugged like it wasn't a big deal. "Be honest. Why did Claire bring you here? Once you have the answer to that, ask it to join you."

Ethan nodded. Seemed about right. He faced the bellsprout again. "Uh… l-listen. Sorry for being… so mean. We really do want to help you. Mind coming with me?"

Tasha clasped her hands over her chest as if to stop her heart from bursting out. "That was perfect! Awww~"

Bellsprout stared at him for a couple minutes. Then she glanced down at the capsule in his hand.

"Sprout." She tapped her head against the large button. The pokeball snapped open and a red flash overtook his vision.

Once it disappeared the grass type was gone and the red and white device was shaking madly in his hands. Ethan needed to drop it, for fear of the thing dislocating his shoulder. It wiggled back and forth in the grass between the two of them, a ruby glow emanating from the center.

After what seemed close to an eternity of watching the shaking pokeball it went still at last and the faint crimson shine vanished.

Tasha beamed, slapping him in the arm. "Congrats! Bellsprout is yours!"

Ethan didn't feel too overjoyed. He picked up the thing and stood up. "Wow. Thanks." He said in the most deadpan tone he could muster. "You completely bullied me!"

She raised a finger. "I think you mean _completely helped_ you. Don't forget I'm your captain for the day. That pokemon came on a silver platter! Better take what you can get."

She continued, beginning to collect her items and placing them back into her purse. "Things are looking up for you when we meet back at the meadow. Not counting Xander, you could be the only boy with a new pokemon!"

"I doubt that," Ethan replied. "You're underestimating my friends."

"Not in the slightest," Tasha rose to her feet. "You're underestimating the Scarlet Forest."

They returned their partners to their capsules before turning to the hole in the gate.

"What do we do about this?" Ethan asked.

"It's obvious, isn't it? This hole isn't supposed to be here, so it's a clue." She grinned at him. "Finding this hole, getting a bellsprout… if I were you I'd hang onto that cleffa. She's a serious lucky charm!"

She took out her flare gun and raised it over her head. She shut her eyes tight, pushing a finger into her ear. Ethan also plugged his ears. Then she pulled the trigger, firing a green blast into the sky. After it was miles upon miles away from Ethan and Tasha in the air, a trail of green smoke developed from the rising flare.


	6. Chapter 6

**Fifteen Minutes Earlier...**

The roar of white waves from rapids rushing down a rocky bed filled Marco's ears. Chilly winds were so strong they whipped back his dark hair. The racing stream continuously sprayed mist into the air, which sprayed his glasses and soaked his shirt and jeans. Even so, he pushed forward, climbing up the thick trunk of a tree, leaning like the tower of Pisa beside the edge of the rapids. Marco grabbed a branch and pulled himself up to the next one, looking up as he clenched his teeth.

"Hold on, I'm almost there!" He yelled out.

Several branches above him a shivering Azurill stood on the end of a very weak branch. He seemed too scared to move. Not only that but too much movement would snap the tree limb. While it was true that Azurill were adept swimmers, the currents below would certainly carry him off toward the waterfall at the end of the stream ahead of them.

Some odd feet below, Xander was scanning his surroundings, looking for anything that he could use to help. His chains bounced on his shorts as he moved.

"That stupid idiot, the hell is he doing? I did _not_ sign up for this…" He spun around, spotting a tall springy weed growing in a berry bush in front of him.

It stuck out like a sore thumb with its strange, phony attempts at fruit sprouting from its leaves. He hurried over to it.

Taking a breath, Marco climbed onto Azurill's branch. Keeping his back pressed against the trunk, he slowly dropped to his knees, then he glanced down. Xander damn near seemed like an ant from this height. It was enough to make his stomach turn. What was he doing up here? His adrenaline had gotten the better of him, when he saw Azurill crying out, God only knows how he had gotten up here. Now Marco was probably moments away from losing his life, right beside this baby pokemon. He had a good view of the forest around him as well; treetops stretched to the horizon amongst clear afternoon skies. He looked back at the small blue creature.

The teen's presence only seemed to frighten him more. Coiling his tail around himself, he took a step back, making the entire branch creak loudly. His added weight wasn't making things any better. _This was a stupid plan_. Marco could feel the wood beginning to break under him.

"Don't move, Azurill!" He shouted out.

His warning didn't matter. The branch broke with a thunderous snap, causing him to plunge toward the rapids below.

"Marco!" Xander hollered jumping around, the long weed in his hands. He pulled out his two pokeballs. "Scraggy! Buizel! Help me out!"

Being so high up, Marco and Azurill were in freefall for a couple minutes, allowing him to bolt across the branch and dive through the air. He caught the baby pokemon in his arms before they hit the cold water together. The current threw him forward, spinning him on his back and pushing them to the surface. Marco coughed up a bunch of water, gasping out for air. In the crash to the stream he ended up losing his glasses. Even without them, he could see the giant boulder that he was headed for.

Fortunately, his feet hit the huge rock first. The momentum, propelled by the rapids launched him up and his sternum slammed into it, making him groan out in pain. He began to slide back down the thing however he managed to hold on to a crack in the boulder using one hand. The waves beat down on his back so hard he could barely move. Water flooded his ears, all he could hear was his own racing heartbeat, amongst the roar of mother nature. He held onto the Azurill as tight as he could. It struggled to get free in his arm and understandably so. It was frightened.

"Marco! Marco!" Xander yelled, sliding to stop on dry land across from him, his Scraggy and Buizel by his side.

He turned to his Buizel, lifting the thick and heavy weed over his head. "You can help them! Dive in and bring them close to this plant!"

Buizel hesitated, covering her mouth using one of her paws. "B-buuuu…" She trembled. "_I-I don't know_…"

"Scrag scrag!" Scraggy stomped his foot. "_What's the deal?! You're a water type ain't ya_?!"

Buizel glanced at the rushing waves in front of her, then looked down, still shaking. She shut her eyes. "_I… I can't_!"

With that, she took off, running ahead toward the calmer streams of the river.

"Buizel!" Xander yelled, watching her flee. He scowled. "Tch, forget her, we'll deal with her later. Come on scraggy, take this!"

Working together, they began to extend the weed out to Marco as if it were a life ring attached to a long rope. He watched it close the distance between them. Thank goodness it was actually long enough.

"Grab it! Hurry up!" Xander ordered when it was nearby.

Marco hesitated for a moment, unsure if he had the strength to reach out. He clenched his jaw then made a dive for it, desperately grasping for whatever he could. He snatched up a rubbery leaf, grabbing the thick green stem. It bent backward, but it held.

"Pull, Scraggy!" Xander grunted taking a step back.

Slowly but surely they were able to reel the two out of the water. When he was close enough, Marco climbed onto dry land and lay on his back. His wet clothes making a puddle around him in the dirt. He watched a few clouds gradually make their way across the sky as he wheezed for air. Loosening his hold, the Azurill wiggled his way out of his arm, flopping on his own behind beside him. It shook itself dry.

"Scraggy scrag?" Scraggy hurried over to the water type and bent over next to it. "_You alright, dude?"_

"Azuuuu…" The baby pokemon looked like he was going to cry. "I… I…"

"Scraggy!" He brought his hands to his face and pulled his cheeks apart while sticking out his tongue. "Fwagghee!"

"Rill…?" Azurill blinked at him, watching curiously. "_What are you doing?_"

"Shraffee shraff!" This time Scraggy tugged on his bottom lip and curled his tongue upward. "Ishf it fuhnee?" ("Is it funny?")

A smile spread on the blue creature's face as he started to laugh. "_Hehe! Yeah_!"

Xander kicked Marco's leg. "Do you have a death wish!? For someone who claims to be so smart, that sure was a dumb ass move!"

Marco turned his head towards him slowly. He was certainly grateful. "Sorry. I just… reacted."

"Sorry isn't gonna cut it, especially if you're dead! My ass is on the line here! You wanna play pokemon ranger with all these little runts, do it on your own time!"

With that, Xander started to storm off, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Let's go Scraggy! We got a coward to find!"

Scraggy hesitated, unsure if leaving Azurill was the best decision.

"I said _let's go_!" He bellowed. That was enough to get his partner going. He hurried to Xander's side, pulling up his baggy yellow skin.

"Scrag…" He took one last look at Azurill before turning and lowering his head. "_Do we really have too_?"

Feeling some strength return to him, Marco sat up and turned to Azurill. His clothes were dripping and he was beginning to shiver in the cool breezes.

"Are you alright, Azurill?" He asked.

"Rill…" He mumbled looking down.

"That was pretty scary wasn't it? We didn't. Exactly make the best decisions, huh?"

"Zuuuu."

He smiled. "How about we look out for each other then? I'll watch your back, and you watch mine. Would that work?"

That made the baby pokemon happy. "Azu!"

Marco laughed, holding out a pokeball. "Let's make it official, then."

A gunshot boomed through the air, startling the Azurill. Crying out he jumped into Marco's arms, burying his face into his wet chest. A few feet ahead, Xander stopped his tracks and looked up. Green smoke was soaring into the air.

He shook his head. "Out of the frying pan," He turned to face Marco, alongside his Scraggy. "Hey! Do you need a stretcher?"

Marco picked himself up, wringing his clothes dry. "Of course not."

Carrying his new companion in one arm, he bent over to grab his bag within some bushes where he'd left it. He zipped it open and reached into a pocket, pulling out a spare set of glasses in a black case.

"Then let's go. The others will have to wait. I need to find my buizel."

**Ten Minutes Later…**

Buizel's legs were starting to ache. The racing rapids had in faded from her view however, she could still hear them in distance. Even through the buzz of beedrill and yanma, as well as the chirps of pidgey and fletchling. Maybe it was in her head. Sunlight poked through holes of the scarlet treetops, casting bright bars of light onto the mud. She zigzagged around thick red bushes, following some dirt trail.

Grubbin and scatterbug darted out of her way as she rushed past, and she shot underneath the legs of bigger pokemon like deerling and stantler. She ran until the red grass stretched over her like weeds and she could barely see anything in front of her anymore.

A towering wall of rock stood before her, blocking her way. Covered in thick vines that sprouted red and green leaves, it extended beyond the thick shrubbery from her left and her right. Her legs slowed to a stop and she collapsed on the ground on her side, breathing heavily. She closed her eyes, allowing her tired muscles to relax.

Unfortunately, she did not see all of the yellow eyes watching her, lurking behind the vines and from the trees over her.

"_You must be lost, little girl_." A male's raspy voice spoke.

Buizel raised her head in time to watch a Simisage emerge from the vines. There was a dark cave beyond him, hidden by all the shrubbery. A small group of pansage followed closely behind him, carrying pecha and oran berries in each of their arms.

More pansage appeared above her, hanging on the vines of the wall. When the simisage closed the distance between her and himself, he stood on his hind legs, casting a large shadow of his hefty, furry figure over her.

His eyes were menacing and his tail stood straight up. He did not look happy to see her.

His claws twitched quietly. "_You must be new around these parts_," He snarled. "This side of the forest belongs to us."

"_I-I'm sorry_," Buizel wheezed. Her limbs trembled as she struggled to pick herself up. "_I'll leave right away, I was just resting_."

The simisage grinned evilly and clapped his hands. At the sound, all the pansage howled and dropped to the ground. Working with the others behind him, they all surrounded them in a large circle.

"_Don't look like you got any berries on ya_," The simisage tilted his head, his grin widening to a wicked smile. "And because we demand payment from all who cross our side, that's gonna cost ya some pain."

He pointed at her. "_Youngsters. Show her what I mean._"

One pansage from her right slowly stepped into the circle, a sinister chuckle in his throat. Another approached her from her left, pounding a fist into his open hand. Her heart in her throat, she slowly started backing away until she fell flat on her butt in the middle of the circle of grass types. Her chest began to feel tight. What could she do? There was nowhere to go.

"Scraggy, dark pulse."

"Skorupi, pin missile!"

A massive wave of dark energy rushed over her head like a tidal wave, armed with hundreds of glowing, pointy purple barbs. The black and violet assault crashed into the wild pokemon, sweeping them off their feet as it continued to head for the simisage. He acted fast, making an x shape with his arms and placing them over his chest while bracing himself.

A clap as loud as thunder echoed through the forest. The simisage's back slammed hard into the rock, taking the air out of him. He collapsed on all fours, wheezing and choking for air. Four of their kind lay motionless on the ground, completely out from the combined attack. The pansage around him all hesitated fearfully, taking a few steps back and making the circle around buizel a little wider.

"_Damn it! Boss is hurt_!" One of the green monkeys said.

"_What do we do_?" Asked another.

Scraggy and Skorupi emerged from the bushes, with Xander and Marco right behind them, amidst the tall shrubbery. Buizel spun around to face them, her eyes widening.

"_You… you're here_…" Was all she could say in a shaky voice.

"_Of course we are_," Scraggy pulled up his yellow skin, his nostrils flaring. "_My boy never leaves a friend behind_!"

She blinked, feeling wetness begin to well in her eyes.

Marco whipped out an empty pokeball from his back pocket. "Now's my chance!"

With that, he leaned his body forward like a baseball pitcher. Aiming for one of the unconscious grass types laying on the ground, he threw his pokeball hard, making the capsule roll mid-air like a bowling ball. It cracked one of the pansage right in the thigh front of buizel, popping open and covering the still green creature in a blinding red light.

Marco snapped his fingers proudly. "Got it."

Scraggy raised a fist, glaring at simisage struggling to rise back to his feet. "_You want some more, asshole? Come on_!"

One of the pansage across from him growled. "_What are you fools doing, standing around! We gotta protect the boss_!"

At those words, she charged at him, letting loose a well yell. A cluster of jade colored vines sprouted from the bush on top of her head as she moved. Rocketing ahead of her to strike Scraggy.

Buizel moved faster, however. Fast enough for her to barely be seen by any eye. She became a white blur that appeared in front of the wild pansage, ramming her shoulder into her enemy's face. The monkey went tumbling across the clearing, for all of her kind to see. Her body bounced along the dirt the way a smooth rock skipped across the calm surface of a pond.

Xander raised his eyebrows. Then he grinned. "She's got a good quick attack."

"_Everybody, retreat for now_!" The simisage spat at the ground, hobbling to his feet.

The wild grass creatures bolted to the plants growing on the rock, some of them climbed up to safety, others disappeared behind them. Retreating into the darkness of the cave.

Simisage shot them one bitter glare before joining the rest of his family, vanishing behind the thick leaves.

With him gone, Marco and his Skorupi hurried into the clearing to collect his prize. He turned the scorpion like beast and kneeled down, a wide smile on his face. "You were excellent! We even got a new teammate!"

"Rupi!"

"_Yay_!" The poison type cheered. She waved her tail back and forth, clamping her claws together.

Scraggy hurried over to buizel, patting her on the head when he reached her. "_Thanks for having my back, girl_!"

She couldn't stop a small smile from forming on her lips, revealing a few pointed teeth before she looked down. "_I-I was only returning the favor, I should be the one thanking you guys_."

She rubbed her arm sheepishly. "_Um, for saving me_."

Scraggy waved a hand at her. "_It's all good, we're a team. It's what we do_!"

Buizel looked up to stare at Xander, who was watching her from the tall grass with his hands in his pockets. He nodded at her quietly before turning around and walking off.

"Let's go. We're probably late."

Marco hurried to his feet. "Just a minute!"

She tilted her head, worried. "_Is he mad_?"

Scraggy rubbed her shoulders. "_Of course not! You really impressed him_!"

He continued, sighing. "_One thing ya should know, though. Our guy is a bit of a tough nut. His emotions don't come out easily. But he does care! Why do ya think we came all this way for you_?"

She blinking at him, running his words through her mind. "_A team, huh_?"

"I SAID LET'S GO!"


	7. Chapter 7

Ethan took a breath to calm his nerves. He had to get this right. His move right now could change his entire pokemon team for the better. Several feet in front of him, hunched over a large red bush growing bright yellow berries was a heracross, simply eating his fill. His back was facing Ethan, the overgrown beetle like creature was completely unaware Ethan was watching across from him, behind the tall, thick red grass growing before the fence.

He was still on the narrow dirt road sitting between the tall strip of shrubbery near the gate protecting the restrained side of the woods, and the dense vegetation of the steep hill leading back to the meadow. Wearing his shorts and a simple t-shirt. While Tasha waited for the others to arrive with Ms. Willows to investigate the strange hole in the fence, Ethan had decided to set off up the road for one more pokemon. He was determined to find something he could rely on in battle. Claire, his cleffa, was a great pokemon. He was starting to see she had a big heart. But in his eyes, she wasn't ready to face another trainer's team. At least not until she evolved. Belle, a nickname for the bellsprout he had gotten, thanks to her efforts, could possibly be a decent addition. Special moves like sleep powder and stun spore could help in any situation. Until she was healthy though, she too wasn't ready. He had no choice, really.

This wild heracross in front of him, however, could be the solution to his dilemma. A solid game changer. They were strong pokemon, most of them gentle giants, really. His pulse raced at the thought of making the big blue bug his own!

Remaining on one knee within the scarlet grass, he reached into his left pocket and slowly pulled out a pokeball. He used his thumb to push the button on the capsule, feeling it expand to normal size. He quietly rocked back and forth for a minute, steeling himself before jumping out of the grass.

His right foot stomped against the dirt first, kicking up a small cloud of dust. A flash of worry jolted through his brain—_what if his aim was off_? _What if he couldn't catch it_?

"Heracross!" He yelled out, startling the bug. He spun around rather swiftly, wiping the mush of his latest aspear berry from his mouth.

_What if he couldn't_? He pushed all the doubt in himself back to the depths of his mind. "You're mine!" He declared.

His desire outweighed them all. And with that desire in his heart, he bent forward slightly and threw the empty pokeball with his good arm.

The red and white capsule sailed high across the woods, bopping against one of the wild pokémon's arms before he knew what hit him. The pokeball popped open and a red light shot out, enveloping around the heracross. Half a second later Ethan's prize vanished and the pokeball was lying beside the berry bush in the soil, wildly shaking from side to side.

He took a step forward, holding his breath, watching the thing continue to roll around in the dirt. To his relief, it suddenly came to an abrupt halt and the red glow around the capsule disappeared. Heracross was his.

He screamed with joy, jumping so high he landed on his ass upon coming back down, surprising himself. Then he laughed and hurried to his feet, running over to collect his prize. Finally, something he actually wanted!

"I'm definitely gonna call you Diesel." He grinned, placing the thing in his right pocket with the pokeballs of his companions.

Diesel was the nickname he'd been saving for ground type, but heracross was certainly strong enough to change that. With that, he turned around, heading around the bend of the trail to go back the way he came, towards Tasha. If he didn't catch another pokemon for the rest of the day, he'd still be happy.

...

"Well, someone's looking cheerful," Tasha giggled when she saw him emerge through the red thicket, still in her white blouse and skirt. "Found something you like out there?"

"Something like that," He chuckled, scratching his cheek sheepishly.

He noticed Tasha was sitting on a small yet comfortable comforter next to the hole in the gate. Laying in the middle of the padded blanket was an assortment of sandwiches wrapped in plastic wrap, all stacked on top of each other. She had an even bigger mound of fresh berries beside them, for her pokemon. Grace the oddish and Ribbon the cutiefly huddled around the fruit, with one more pokemon he hadn't seen before. A tympole was with the others, happily munching on a tan persim berry.

He pointed at the tadpole like creature, his eyebrows shooting up. "I didn't know you had a tympole too, cool!"

Tasha smiled and nodded. "Mmhmm! His name is Tyson, and he's so precious! I love him."

She continued, beckoning him over. "Don't just stand there, call out your friends, let's have lunch!"

"O-oh, sure." He said, fumbling through his right pocket to fetch his pokeballs.

"I hope you didn't fire your flare just to bring us in for lunch," Ms. Willows spoke, pushing her way through the thick grass with Summer right behind her. She remained in her cargo shorts, and bright, short sleeved top. Summer was in her dark leggings and long sleeved shirt.

Tasha quickly hurried to her feet, going as stiff as a board. "No ma'am! Ethan and I actually found something really important!"

Summer poked her head out from behind the woman, pointing at the hole in the fence in front of them. "Is that it?"

"It is." Ethan nodded.

"Um!" Tasha shook her head to gather herself. "Mr. Humphries explained that this gate protects the deepest parts of the forest and the pokemon that live within. He also said that it's well maintained."

Ethan blinked, catching on quickly. "If this fence is watched so closely, why would this hole be here? Also, Tasha and I have been over here for a good thirty minutes. I haven't seen any security yet."

Summer moved to stand beside Ms. Willows, then looked up at her. "Was it made on purpose? For pokemon?"

The woman folded her arms and frowned. "We already have a spot in the woods where this gate is wide open. Wild pokemon around here can move in and out safely. The same goes for students and adults."

She walked toward the hole and kneeled before it, beginning to examine the burnt and rusted tips. Her frown deepened. "This is different. And I don't like it."

She turned to face the students. "There's a good chance this hole is man-made, meaning we're probably dealing with dangerous people. From this point forward, I want all of us to move together."

Ethan swallowed nervously. He looked down, running a hand through his hair as he sank into his thoughts. He did not like where any of this was going. His pokemon were barely a day old. Not only that, but the school year at St. Margaret hadn't even started, yet here he was, helping a teacher prepare to catch some criminals? There was way more to this place than he thought. Was he even strong enough to help? What could he do in this situation, exactly?

"Guess we're waiting for the others, then?" Summer asked, placing one hand on her hip. She glanced at him, noticing the worried look on his face.

Tasha reached forward and grabbed a sandwich, her bottom lip quivering as she tried to fight back a smile. "Lunch, anyone?"

Across the forest, back on campus, Principal Munroe sat smack dab in the middle of Orland Park. On a bench in front of giant fountain with golden statues of goldeen and seaking shooting streams of water into the air. To his right, a brick path surrounded by wide grassy fields curved off, leading back to academic end of the school, back to his office. To his left, another road winded through the park to the residential side of campus. Dressed in a dark blazer and matching slacks, he tossed out small pieces of bread from a bag sitting on his lap, feeding a large flock of wingull resting at his feet. He sprinkled the ground with a fresh handful of bread then sat back against the bench, watching the bird pokemon hurry to him. He smiled.

Something was approaching him in the corner of his eye. He turned to his right, spotting Calvin on the road, wearing a gray blazer, black tie and slacks. Behind him were two others, he recognized them immediately. Kaylin sported a navy blue suit, highlighted with a matching pencil skirt that flaunted her womanly curves. Her brunette locks were tied into a curly yet loose bun. Her twin brother Kenneth also had on a blue suit that looked similar to Munroe's own garb. His face was clean cut and his own brunette locks brushed the tips of his ears.

The wingull begrudgingly took off, squawking loudly when the three adults reached his bench. Kaylin quickly took a seat beside Munroe and crossed her legs, sighing to herself as she sank into her seat.

"Well, those new students will certainly stay fit around here," She closed her eyes. "Talk about getting your steps in!"

"Nice place you got here, principal," Kenneth placed his hands on his hips and scanned the area, doing a slow turn. "Glad to know our efforts won't be going waste."

Calvin extended a hand to him. "These two were just bringing me up to speed. You've really outdone yourself this time, Munroe. St. Margaret is sure to last another twenty years with allies like Team Valor on our side."

Munroe did nothing but smile. "Happy to hear you're finally on board."

Calvin nodded. "If you all will excuse me, other matters require my attention. Have a good afternoon."

With that, he was off, briskly walking down the road, back the way he came.

Once he was far enough, it was time to get to business. Munroe sat up in his seat, placing the bag of bread to his side. "I trust he wasn't too much trouble."

Kenneth placed his hands in the pockets of his pants, narrowing his eyes. "He's a nosy bastard."

"But he won't be a problem," Kaylin grinned, locking her hands in her lap. "We've got our best shadow on him."

Munroe arched an eyebrow, facing her. "Shadow?"

"Our agents, principal," Kenneth chuckled, stepping in front of him. Casting his shadow across the older man's body. "They're all over campus now. Disguised as new students, upperclassmen, teachers, librarians, office workers, security guards. All of them are ready to move the moment we speak."

For some reason, his words sent a chill down his back but Munroe said nothing and nodded quietly.

Kaylin watched him silently. Then she rolled her eyes. "I hope you're not having regrets, Principal Munroe." She sounded irritated.

He went rigid, waving his hands quickly. "N-none at all! I'd be in debt up to my ears it wasn't for Team Valor!"

"Damn straight," Kenneth grinned, tilting his head. "Better keep that in mind, old man."

Munroe cleared his throat. For his next question, he spoke in a hushed tone. "How goes the operation?"

"Our agents are wrapping things up now in the Scarlet Forest." Kaylin rose to her feet, smoothing out the wrinkles in her skirt.

"Pomeg, Leichi and Tomato berries are going for a high prices in shops across the region right now," Kenneth explained. "And your pretty forest is like a goddamn warehouse for the stuff. If Team Valor becomes the plug, that's a nice chunk of change in all of our pockets, understand?"

"If all goes well, no one will know we're involved," Kaylin added, folding her hands under her bust. "We have plans in case things go sideways. You better be prepared."

"I'll cover my end, don't worry." Munroe said.

...

Ms. Willows pushed a handful of tall red bushes to her left, creating an opening big enough for herself to step through. Sunlight from above sun gleamed through, illuminating the lonely dirt road beneath the dense shrubbery. The plants grew so close near the fence, she could barely see the path in front of her. Honestly, it wasn't too dark out, but the scarlet color of the thick plants growing around her certainly made things feel rather gloomy. Ethan followed closely behind her and had to shield his eyes with one hand as he stepped out into another clearing. A cool breeze greeted him, tugging at his clothes gently. The air smelled like pine, with hints of fresh fish.

When he removed his hand from his face, his eyebrows shot up at the sight before him. He was standing in front of a marsh, red grass and water stretched out as far as his eyes could see. Towering trees with burgundy leaves sat on the horizon. Groups of beautifly fluttered over him, letting the wind guide their way. To his right, in the distance, a cluster of lombre and ludicolo danced in the water. Not too far off ahead, he spotted a herd of girafarig, bending their long necks down to drink from a pool of water in front of them. Across from them on the other end, a smaller herd of tauros were also drinking. Blitzle and Zebstrika grazed on the wet plants, along with several stantler, scattered around them.

Just when Ethan thought this place couldn't get any more stunning, he walks into something like this. He didn't even have the desire to go catch any of these creatures. He stood there and quietly appreciated the beauty of nature and pokemon as one. Behind him, Clarke and Summer emerged from the bushes.

"My God, this is amazing," She said almost breathless once she had gotten to his side to marvel at the wilderness. "So many pokemon!"

Clarke walked to stand beside the blonde, brushing loose leaves and twigs from his tank top and shorts. "The deep end of the Scarlet Forest, huh?"

He grinned, putting his hands on his hips. "Gotta say, it's not disappointing me right now."

Hearing their voices, some of the herds began to move to safer distances. To his left, a dense thicket sitting over a puddle began to rustle, catching the attention of all three teenagers.

To their surprise, a wild mudkip hopped out, happily splashing into the water in front of it. "Kip! Kip! Kip!"

Instead of the normal blue color most of her kind normally had, this mudkip had a purple hue all over her body.

Summer giggled. "Wow, look at her! She's so cute!"

Ethan and Clarke's eyes damn near went as wide as dinner plates.

"She's mine!" They shouted at the same time, startling the blonde.

Then they turned to one another, each hearing the voice of the other. "What? No, she's mine!" They shouted simultaneously.

They fumbled through their pockets for pokeballs. Clarke was faster, yanking out a quick ball."

"Hah!" Clarke chuckled, showing his roommate the evidence of his sharper movements, right as Ethan pulled out his own pokeball.

To his relief, a second mudkip jumped out of the bushes. In addition to his size of his own body, the single fin on his head and tail were slightly bigger than the oddly colored female next to him. Together they started to chase each other in circles within the puddle, kicking up water and mud.

Summer nodded. "There you go. Now both of you can get one."

Ethan sighed and closed his eyes, calming his nerves. He remembered how great it felt when he caught Diesel, his heracross. Realizing he might be acting extremely selfish, he nodded to himself. He wanted Clarke to experience that same feeling, if he hadn't caught anything yet.

He opened his eyes, giving his roommate a kind smile. "Go ahead man, you go for her."

Clarke blinked at him. "Seriously?"

"Absolutely. My day was made when I caught my heracross. Mudkip is all yours, if you want."

Summer gazed at him in disbelief. "You got a freaking heracross?!"

"Nice!" Clarke laughed, punching him playfully in the arm. "Those suckers are fucking rare!"

Ethan shrugged. "Beginner's luck, I guess. So go on dude! Catch the shiny!"

Clarke smiled. "I owe ya man!"

With that, he spun around, focusing on the two water types still playing and splashing each other in the puddle by the bushes across from him. Taking a step forward, he threw the empty quick ball hard, making the capsule spin rapidly.

It crashed into the purple mudkip's back before shooting open with blinding red light. The male pokemon with her slid to a stop, his entire body tensing up.

It barely got a chance to register what had happened before Ethan's own pokeball cracked him upside the head, then popped open to capture him.

Marco and Tasha were the next pair to make it out of the bushes.

He took off his glasses, and blew his breath against the left lens. The ends of his polo shirt was still wet, along with the waistband of his pants from his escapades with Xander near the river.

Tasha was beaming with happiness next to him. She extended her arms out in front of her. "It's absolutely beautiful beyond the gate!" She twirled cutely in a full circle. "I'm getting so excited!"

Then she stopped and pointed ahead of her. "Ahhh! Those are blitzle! I'm gonna go get one!"

She was off before Marco could grasp the situation.'

Xander and Camryn brought up the rear ducking under a crooked branch before stepping out into the marsh. At Ms. Willows' request, both of them were madly typing away on their phones, sending messages to teachers and staff back at Winetta Lab.

Xander was done first, sliding his cell into the pockets of his heavy black jeans. The chains hanging on them jingled softly. A few small ants crawled along the sleeves of his dark shirt and calmly flicked them off, frowning.

He noticed Tasha off doing her own thing, while Ethan and Clarke celebrated around Summer, pokeballs held high over their heads. His frown deepened as he walked over to them, leaving Camryn and Ms. Willows standing in front of the tall red plants.

Camryn turned to face her teacher, her buxom chest jiggling a little within her crop top. Below that, she was still in jeans.

"I don't where Drew is, but he isn't texting back," She glanced up at Ms. Willows before continuing to type. "Do you think Mr. Humphries will respond?"

Ms. Willows nodded. "It's definitely worth a shot. We need someone to confirm our updates and get us some backup before we move any further out here. We don't know what we're walking into."

"Will you idiots knock it off?!" Xander slashed the air with one of his hands as he approached Ethan, Summer and Clarke. "You two aren't in this at all!"

Clarke stepped up with a scowl, pointing at him. "What the hell is your problem, dude?"

Xander marched right up to his face. "My problem is you two still out here catching pokemon!"

Clarke didn't back down. "So? What's wrong with—"

"It isn't time for that right now!" Xander cut him off. "We're looking for trespassers! Probably crooks who take out fools like you for having their heads in the clouds! _SO_! Instead of searching for pokemon—which they might be stealing, by the way—search for clues that'll help us find them!"

He glared at Ethan. "If your mind isn't in this, go back to the dorms!"

With that, he stomped off, following a strip of dry land leading him toward Tasha the herd of Blitzle and Zebstrika. Xander had to set her straight too. He shoved his hands into his pockets, grumbling. "Fucking noobs, I swear to God…"

Ethan looked down bitterly, rubbing his neck. Summer patted one of his shoulders to console him. "Don't let him get to you, he's an asshole."

Clarke kicked a rock into a puddle in his frustration. "You know what's worse? He's right." He swore to himself, walking back toward Ms. Willows.


End file.
